Participatory Technology Assessment in AI Development for Sleep Medicine

This paper argues for the essential role of Participatory Technology Assessment (pTA) in the ethical development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for sleep medicine. The involvement of stakeholders, particularly patients, is a socio-political and pragmatic necessity rooted in the moral claim to include diverse voices in decisions that affect them, leading to higher acceptance and resolution of value conflicts. AI development in sleep medicine, which is rapidly advancing through big data analysis, introduces complex ethical challenges, including patient privacy, data security, and the potential for algorithmic bias. Sleep data is inherently sensitive, and the risk of re-identification and data misuse by third parties is a major concern. pTA, informed by discourse ethics, provides a necessary framework to move AI development from a purely expert-driven model to a democratically legitimate and ethically informed one. By engaging patients on issues like consent and data control, pTA builds social trust, provides crucial policy insights, and ensures that AI innovation in sleep medicine serves the collective good.