Rethinking trust in responsible AI

Abstract

Trust is widely recognized as a core principle of Responsible AI, yet its interpretation varies significantly across disciplines. This paper examines how computer science, sociology, philosophy, and law conceptualize trust in AI systems, highlighting both tensions and complementarities. From a computer science perspective, trust is often approached as a set of system-level properties that should be formalized and evaluated with metrics. In contrast, the social sciences and humanities emphasize its relational, normative, and institutional dimensions. We argue that trust cannot be reduced to a single system property or technical measure, as it emerges from social-technical interactions involving users, developers, legal norms, and social expectations. To support interdisciplinary dialogue, we propose treating trust as a boundary concept that enables cooperation across epistemic communities acknowledging conceptual differences. Trust is widely recognized as a core principle of Responsible AI, yet its interpretation varies significantly across disciplines. This paper examines how computer science, sociology, philosophy, and law conceptualize trust in AI systems, highlighting both tensions and complementarities. From a computer science perspective, trust is often approached as a set of system-level properties that should be formalized and evaluated with metrics. In contrast, the social sciences and humanities emphasize its relational, normative, and institutional dimensions. We argue that trust cannot be reduced to a single system property or technical measure, as it emerges from social-technical interactions involving users, developers, legal norms, and social expectations. To support interdisciplinary dialogue, we propose treating trust as a boundary concept that enables cooperation across epistemic communities acknowledging conceptual differences.