Proceedings of International Conference on Applied Innovation in IT  ·  2025/12/22  ·  Vol. 13  ·  Issue 5  ·  pp. 1431–1441
Ethical Risks and Improvement Potentials of AI Tools in Carbon Footprint Calculation: The Case of XAI
Din-Yuang Huang
📄 Download PDF DOI: 10.25673/123183
Abstract
This study aims to explore the ethical risks from AI tools in carbon footprint calculation applications, especially focusing on Explainability and Transparency. Although AI provides convenient computing, the problem of “black box” may lead to a variety of ethical concerns caused by computing. This study first systematically reviews multiple documents and analyses to understand the initiatives for AI ethics and the risks arising from unexplainability and opacity. This study proposes Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) as a solution to mitigate these ethical risks. The paper further explores how XAI can improve the transparency of carbon footprint calculation and its specific implementation by users through simulation of real-world scenarios. The Results show that XAI technology can transform AI's abstract predictions into mathematically rigorous and actionable evidence, enabling users to implement specific carbon reduction behaviours in their lives. Ultimately, this research contributes to the growing discourse on responsible AI by demonstrating how explainable models can foster trust, accountability, and sustainability in data-driven environmental decision-making.
Keywords
AI Ethics Carbon Footprint Calculation Explainability Transparency Explainable AI (XAI) Sustainable Development.
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