By / BBB Serving Mainland BC | bbb.org
Artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are rapidly becoming the engine behind smarter, faster, and more customer-focused businesses. Better Business Bureau serving Mainland BC (BBB) is encouraging organizations to adopt ethical, transparent, and secure technology practices as they navigate the year ahead.
“Customers trust companies that put people first,” says Neesha Hothi, director of marketing & communications for Better Business Bureau serving Mainland BC. “2026 is the year that AI becomes an everyday reality for most businesses. When done right, these tools help companies serve customers better, faster, and more efficiently.”
BBB has compiled the following tips for implementation and ethics surrounding the process of powering your business with AI. Read on for ways to harness the power of AI while maintaining credibility, accountability, and good business practice into 2026 and beyond.
Key areas for businesses to consider in 2026
- Be transparent about AI use. Tell customers when they’re interacting with a bot versus a human. Label AI-generated content clearly because transparency builds trust and reduces confusion.
- Train your team to spot AI-powered scams. Deepfake video calls, voice-cloned “CEO” requests, and highly realistic phishing emails are increasing. Equip staff to slow down, verify unexpected requests, and follow secure approval processes.
- Secure customer data. If AI is being used to personalize offers or improve service, be clear about what data is being collected, how it’s being stored, and the safeguards in place to protect it.
- Keep the human touch. Even the best automation cannot replace empathy or real human support. Always offer customers an option to speak with a real person when needed.
- Implement AI gradually. Start with small, high-impact tasks and choose tools that align with your team’s capacity and workflows.
- Use trusted resources. BBB Artificial intelligence HQ (bbb.org/all/your-artificial-intelligence-hq) offers guidance, best practices, and tools to help businesses adopt AI safely and ethically. It includes robust information on how to spot fake images and videos and how to recognize scams when evaluating AI products.
Tips for ethical AI usage
Businesses should consider applying these ten tips for ethical AI usage to foster trust in the marketplace and adhere to ethical business practices.
- Keep humans in control. If an AI system encounters an issue it cannot handle or makes a mistake, a human can intervene and provide the necessary guidance or correction. Human oversight also encourages collaboration between humans and AI, resulting in better decision-making and more effective use of AI technology. Ensure there is a well-defined protocol for human intervention in your AI system and train your staff on when and how to use it.
- Engage all stakeholders. By soliciting input from employees, customers, suppliers, and even the local community, you can better understand the potential impacts of your AI system and address any concerns or suggestions they may have. Consider regular surveys or meetings to collect feedback and ideas from your stakeholders.
- Maintain openness, transparency, and clarity. Explain the rationale behind AI-driven decisions, the data used, and the steps taken to ensure ethical usage. This transparency helps build stakeholders’ trust and ensures they understand how AI systems shape their interactions with your business.
- Be fair and inclusive. Design and implement AI systems that treat everyone fairly, avoiding biases based on factors such as gender, race, ethnicity, age, or disability. Use diverse data sets to train AI models and regularly monitor AI systems to identify and address discriminatory outcomes. Implement regular bias audits to ensure your AI systems are fair and inclusive.
- Establish accountability and governance. Assign responsibility for developing, deploying, and monitoring AI technologies to specific individuals or teams. Implementing robust governance structures helps ensure that AI systems are used responsibly and ethically throughout their lifecycle.
- Respect privacy. Comply with relevant data protection laws and regulations, obtain informed consent from users when necessary, and be transparent about their data use. Implement strict data-handling procedures—such as anonymizing data and using secure data storage and transfer methods—and conduct regular audits to ensure compliance.
- Ensure safety and reliability. Use high-quality data, create fallback mechanisms, and monitor AI systems in real time to identify and address any issues that may arise. Establish a routine internal review process to ensure the performance and safety of your AI systems.
- Uphold intellectual property rights. Ensure AI systems properly cite and source intellectual property, including copyrighted content, patents, and trade secrets. Implement mechanisms, such as content filters or licensing agreements, to prevent AI-generated content from infringing on the rights of others.
- Benefit the public and be socially responsible. Deploy AI systems in ways that contribute to the broader social good while considering potential environmental, economic, and societal impacts. Evaluate the environmental footprint of your AI systems and take steps to improve it, such as using energy-efficient hardware or cloud services.
- Pursue continuous improvement. Conduct ethical reviews to ensure continued adherence to evolving ethical standards and best practices in AI development and usage. Plan for regular AI system reviews and updates and stay informed about the latest developments in AI ethics and best practices.
As businesses integrate more technology into their operations, ethical and transparent implementation becomes essential to building long-term customer trust. BBB encourages organizations to stay informed, adopt secure practices, and prioritize people in every step of their digital transformation. ■
The Better Business Bureau has empowered people to find businesses, brands, and charities they can trust for over 110 years. In 2024, people turned to BBB more than 220 million times for BBB Business Profiles on 5.3 million businesses, and 80,000 times for BBB charity reports on about 12,000 charities, for free at BBB.org. Regional, independent BBBs can be found across the United States and Canada, including BBB Serving Mainland BC & the Yukon Territory, which was founded in 1939.
