AQai Ethical Use Policy

AQai Ethical Use Policy

Owner: Leadership Team
Review: Annually or on major product/technology change
Email for concerns: ethics@aqai.io

1. Purpose

AQai exists to help people adapt and thrive so no one is left behind. This Ethical Use Policy sets out how our assessments, platform, AI features, training and certifications must be used so they:

• protect people and their data,
• are applied fairly and transparently,
• support development (not surveillance or discrimination),
• align with our contribution to the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3, 4, 8, 9, 10),
• and stay consistent with our ISO 27001 information security obligations.

This policy applies to: AQai staff, contractors, and anyone using AQai products on our behalf; and to the extent possible, to customers and partners who deploy our assessments.

2. Our Ethical Principles

We commit to the following principles in design, delivery, and use of AQai products:

1. Integrity – we will be honest about what our tools can and cannot do.
2. Fairness – our tools are for development, not to disadvantage individuals.
3. Transparency – people must know who will see their data before they take an assessment.
4. Inclusivity – we aim to design and improve for diverse users, cultures and abilities.
5. Responsible/ethical AI – where AI is used, we put guardrails in place and tell users it’s AI-supported.
6. Continuous improvement – we will update methods and language as the science and guidance mature.
   
    

3. Alignment to UN SDGs

AQai’s work is intended to support the United Nations Global Goals, specifically:

• SDG 3 – Good Health & Wellbeing (psychological safety, better change experience),
• SDG 4 – Quality Education (accessible learning and coaching),
• SDG 8 – Decent Work & Economic Growth (better talent development),
• SDG 9 – Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (responsible innovation with AI),
• SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities (not leaving people behind in change).
  
   

We work hard to ensure our tools are used in ways that develop people rather than exclude them.

4. Data Visibility & Participant Control

Default AQai principle (development use):

• Assessment results are visible only to the person who completed the assessment.
• The individual is in control of sharing their results with a coach, manager, or organisation.
• AQai may store aggregated and anonymised data for research, benchmarking, and product improvement — no identifiable results are sold or shared with third parties.
  
   

Organisation-/partner-configured visibility:

• If a customer, partner, or employer configures the platform so that results are visible to someone else from the start (e.g. a line manager or internal coach), this must be explicitly stated to the user before they begin the assessment.
• This disclosure is mandatory and part of our workflow. No “hidden” sharing.
  
   

Rights & ISO27001 alignment:

• Participants may request access, correction, or deletion of their data in line with our privacy/GDPR/ISO27001 processes.
• AQai does not sell identifiable personal data.
  
   

5. Approved and Non-Recommended Uses

5.1 Intended / positive uses (illustrative, not exhaustive):

• Individual development and coaching
• Team and leadership development
• Change/readiness/adaptability programmes
• Organisational diagnostics and insight
• Training, workshops, and certified practitioner delivery
  
   

5.2 Non-recommended use (as of 2024):

• We do not currently recommend using AQai assessments for recruitment, selection, or high-stakes employment decisions.
• Rationale: current validation, rigour and adverse-impact testing have not yet been completed to a level we consider sufficient for selection purposes.
• This position will be reviewed periodically as the product roadmap and research evidence mature.
• Customers/partners who choose to ignore this guidance should do so on their own risk basis and ensure local legal/HR validation.
  
   

6. Ethical AI Use

Where AQai products include AI-supported features (e.g. guided insights, coach support, summarising user inputs), we will:

1. Say when AI is being used or likely involved.
2. Keep a human in the loop for high-impact decisions (AI should support, not decide).
3. Work to minimise bias in models and content, acknowledging that no system is perfect.
4. Continuously improve our AI features as new responsible-AI guidance (e.g. OECD/UNESCO style principles: human-centred, fair, transparent, accountable) becomes available.
   
    

7. Partners, Practitioners and Customers

• We publish this policy in our help/support portal and make it available to all certified partners, customers, and practitioners.
• We expect partners to deploy AQai assessments in line with this ethical policy and to use the correct disclosure wording when they change data visibility.
• If AQai becomes aware of misuse (e.g. using assessments to filter out candidates without disclosure, sharing individual data without consent), we will:
  
   
  1. Engage first to educate and correct,
  2. Support the partner to update their process,
  3. If misuse continues or is wilful, we may suspend or terminate access/partner status in line with the partner agreement.
     
      

8. Reporting Concerns

Anyone (participant, partner, staff member) can report suspected unethical use of AQai tools — for example:

• data shared without disclosure,
• assessments used to discriminate,
• AI outputs used without human review.
  
   

Report to: ethics@aqai.io
Reports will be reviewed by the Leadership Team (or a delegated group) and handled confidentially where possible.

9. Inclusion, Fairness & Psychological Safety

• Learning, training, assessments and workshops should be designed to avoid harm, shame, or exclusion.
• Facilitators and certified practitioners should create psychologically safe spaces when sharing assessment results.
• We will continue to research, test and improve our models to reduce cultural, language or demographic bias.
  
   

10. Governance & Review

• Owner: AQai Leadership Team
• Review cadence: at least annually, or whenever there is a major product / AI / data-handling change.
• This policy sits alongside:
  
   
  • Privacy Policy
  • ISO27001 policies (access control, data retention, incident management)
  • Modern Slavery Policy
  • Certified Partner Agreement (which will take precedence for partner commercial terms)
    
     

11. Short Ethical Use Statement (for portal/and comms)

“AQai assessments are designed for development. Your data is yours. By default, only you can see your results unless your organisation has told you otherwise before you start. AQai does not sell your identifiable data. We strongly discourage using AQai assessments for recruitment decisions at this time.”