With the GDPR, AI Act, and DSA, Europe has introduced important new legislation for governing the digital realm. However, developing the necessary literacy to understand morally acceptable actions and decisions in this area are not yet established. Infrastructures for assessment, oversight, and enforcement are not yet effectively in place. There is a need for a specific profession of digital ethicists who can implement good governance and conduct for AI and data practices. Already, organisations are creating positions for data ethics and responsible AI. But a formal education for this profession is still missing despite an obvious need for this expertise. Combining perspectives from industry, public management and academia, this panel asks which skills such a digital ethicist would need, and how they would develop effective agency within organisations to develop socially responsible, innovative and meaningful AI and big data practices.
