Jana Misic

I am an external PhD candidate in ethics and technology at the University of Twente and am based at the Rathenau Institute in The Hague. My doctoral research focuses on the ethical risks of automating decision-making in the public sector through public-private partnerships. It is motivated by emerging concerns about the increased use of automated systems in government services, zooming in on the instances where private tech companies tech provide the infrastructure, algorithmic systems, and the know-how. While machine learning algorithms are not the norm presently in Europe, they are on the horizon for public sector services. Anticipation of risks then becomes crucial as there is something particularly worrisome about private entities taking over public tasks, not as domain experts (e.g. welfare or mobility), but as the technology experts to whom the domain could eventually be outsourced. My project is part of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network ‘PROTECT - Protecting Personal Data Amidst Big Data Innovation’, funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 program.