In the race to build smarter AI, some companies act as if transparency is a liability. They fear that opening the hood, revealing the training data, the confidence scores, the business incentives might expose too much. But hiding complexity doesn’t make systems safer. It makes them opaque, and therefore untrustworthy.
Trust isn’t about asking users to believe. It’s about showing them why they should.
Let’s take an example: a 2023 survey by Pew Research found that 61% of Americans feel uncertain or fearful about AI’s growing role in society. Meanwhile, only 30% of AI companies publish transparency reports about how their systems work or are audited. The gap isn’t just informational—it’s emotional.
When AI tools are used in life-altering decisions who gets a job interview, who qualifies for a loan, or whose medical scan is flagged users deserve more than results. They deserve explanations.
Transparency isn’t a compliance box. It’s a moral obligation to the public.
