Abstract
Artificial intelligence is increasingly being integrated into lift systems, with applications in dispatching, traffic analysis, preventive maintenance and passenger-facing services. These technologies may improve efficiency, reliability, safety, accessibility and sustainability, but they also introduce ethical risks that have not yet been widely explored within lift research.
This paper argues that lift systems represent a distinct ethical context. They are shared, physical, safety-critical infrastructure embedded within buildings, and many users can’t meaningfully opt out of using them. The ethical burden is therefore different from many consumer digital systems, where individual choice and consent are often treated as central safeguards.
As lift systems become more automated and data-driven, questions arise about prioritisation, surveillance, labour, environmental cost, commercial incentives, accountability and control. The paper proposes early guidelines intended to support industry discussion, future standards development and ethically aware technical research. The aim is to ensure that deployment of AI improves the systems people depend on while promoting fairness, equality, privacy, skills use, sustainability and accountability.