One of the things I think is important to remember when it comes to Defence is that the idea of boundaries between military technology and civilian technology hasn’t really existed since the 1970s. A vast amount of defence technology now is dual-use, meaning that even people working in (for example) the video games or automotive industry are, in a potentially unaware manner, designing hardware and software for the defence industry. And funnily enough vice-versa. So that line gets fuzzy fast. It sounds like your work is dual-use so it might be a bit complex for you to work through, in terms of ethics.
As for the hard ethics there, it depends on your own ethics and what you want to accomplish with the work. If the finance is the main draw, then that’s it’s own thing for only you to answer. If you want to make ‘wider impact’ in a positive way, then that’s a whole other thing that again I guess falls to you and relates largely to the role. There’s plenty of people work with stakeholders they aren’t exactly stoked about in order to achieve a larger goal.
I asked myself a similar question the first time I had the opportunity to do AI Governance with a police force, as someone who was from a background which often has friction with police. Some mixed feelings there. I eventually decided that the chance to make positive impact was worth it, but plenty of other people might feel otherwise.
In my job search until this point I have refused to apply to jobs at defense contractors and have turned down interviews from recruiters because it just seemed icky
I would end by saying that if something makes you feel ‘icky’ it might not be worth doing it, no matter what the more neutral ethics say. I’m happy with the lines I have drawn, and it’s important that you are as well. Not sure any of us can help with that :)
One of the things I think is important to remember when it comes to Defence is that the idea of boundaries between military technology and civilian technology hasn’t really existed since the 1970s. A vast amount of defence technology now is dual-use, meaning that even people working in (for example) the video games or automotive industry are, in a potentially unaware manner, designing hardware and software for the defence industry. And funnily enough vice-versa. So that line gets fuzzy fast. It sounds like your work is dual-use so it might be a bit complex for you to work through, in terms of ethics.
As for the hard ethics there, it depends on your own ethics and what you want to accomplish with the work. If the finance is the main draw, then that’s it’s own thing for only you to answer. If you want to make ‘wider impact’ in a positive way, then that’s a whole other thing that again I guess falls to you and relates largely to the role. There’s plenty of people work with stakeholders they aren’t exactly stoked about in order to achieve a larger goal.
I asked myself a similar question the first time I had the opportunity to do AI Governance with a police force, as someone who was from a background which often has friction with police. Some mixed feelings there. I eventually decided that the chance to make positive impact was worth it, but plenty of other people might feel otherwise.
I would end by saying that if something makes you feel ‘icky’ it might not be worth doing it, no matter what the more neutral ethics say. I’m happy with the lines I have drawn, and it’s important that you are as well. Not sure any of us can help with that :)