ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Algorithmic accountability

Algorithmic accountability means being responsible for the decisions made by computers and the models or rules they use to make these decisions. When people create computer programs or algorithms, they put in rules that tell the computer how to make decisions. These rules are based on data and mathematical formulas, and they can affect people's lives and the decisions they make.

For example, a computer program might decide which loan applications are approved or denied based on a person's credit score. If the program's algorithm is biased, it can unfairly reject some people's applications, and that could lead to discrimination.

Algorithmic accountability means that people need to be aware of these algorithms' consequences and how they work. We need to make sure that these algorithms are fair, unbiased, and transparent. It is important to understand which data is being used to create these algorithms, how they are built, and how they make their decisions.

In summary, algorithmic accountability means being responsible for the outcome of computer programs' decisions and making sure they are unbiased, fair, and transparent. It is like making sure that the rules that the computer uses to make decisions are good and don't hurt anyone.
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