Responsible Innovation has been much discussed in academic circles but there is little guidance for companies wishing to demonstrate that they are innovating responsibly. As part of Innogen's project on Proportionate and Adaptive Governance of Innovative Technologies (PAGIT), we developed a case study on Responsible Innovation, which recommended that the British Standards Institution (BSI) should develop a standard for Responsible Innovation.
The BSI is now being funded by Innovate UK to develop a Publicly Available Standard (PAS) and Joyce Tait has been commissioned to write it.
The Responsible Innovation Standard will provide guidance for creating new products, services or processes, particularly when a technology is likely to disrupt existing business models and value chains, regulatory systems have not yet been formalized and/or there could be strong public interest or divergent public opinions. The standard will support responsible behaviour by all relevant actors within an innovation ecosystem, by helping them structure their thinking and guide their actions in the area of responsible innovation. It will be relevant to companies and individuals taking new products, services or processes to market, and will be of interest to an innovating company’s wider stakeholders such as suppliers, customers, employers, shareholders and citizens. The PAS will be applicable across all innovative technology and market sectors, including those working in areas such as AI, robotics, autonomous vehicles, new materials and manufacturing processes, diagnostic devices, novel therapeutics, industrial biotechnology, agri-tech, and blockchain/ financial technologies.