Days → Hours
Those who experience the Ethaas process are surprised by how uncomplicated processing enormous ethical depth can be.
Founder/CEO, New Space / Deep Tech
50h
were saved. "It's probably hard to imagine anything faster, with fewer internal resources, and in such depth."
Before any ethical assessment is possible, it must be clear what the project is actually about. In this initial phase, knowledge about the project is systematically gathered – who the relevant people are, which documents and systems exist, and how this knowledge can be made accessible most efficiently. Methods such as structured interviews, collaborative workshops, or AI-supported text analysis are used, depending on the project structure. The result is a structured knowledge base that serves as the foundation for the analysis.
Knowledge carriers
Capturing roles and expertise
In startups, ethically relevant knowledge often resides with unexpected individuals. ethaas systematically maps who truly knows something – before the analysis even begins.
Mapping info sources
Documents, systems, media
Grant applications, internal roadmaps, interviews, specialist literature – ethaas systematically records all relevant sources. What is not included cannot be evaluated.
Compiling knowledge
Interviews, workshops, AI
Grant applications, white papers, interviews – ethaas methodically and AI-supportedly compiles all sources into a finished knowledge base. Days become hours.
Structuring knowledge
Clusters, categories, relevance
Interview notes, funding documents, protocols – ethaas structures the collected raw material into a clear analytical basis. Contradictions are made visible.
The core of the process. Based on the collected knowledge, the central ethical questions and potential conflicts are identified. An ethics matrix is used as an analytical tool – a tool derived from the academic literature on applied ethics that systematically relates relevant stakeholder groups to ethical dimensions such as autonomy, justice, benefit, and non-maleficence. The analysis can be iterative: New insights may lead to further questions or the expansion of the matrix.
Identify dilemmas
Identifying conflicts and risks
Ethaas analyzes the knowledge base from three perspectives – impact, values, regulation – and creates an audit-proof list of ethical dilemmas.
Setup ethics matrix
Stakeholder x Dimensions
The ethics matrix relates stakeholders (groups) and ethical principles – thus ensuring that no relevant combination is overlooked.
Systematics
Iterative & refining
The analysis runs in two to three loops – iteratively, not endlessly. That is to say: until the matrix yields responsible recommendations.
Derivatives
from the ethics matrix
Interview notes, funding documents, protocols – ethaas structures the collected raw material into a clear analytical basis.
The findings from the analysis are translated into concrete, actionable recommendations and documented in a structured report. This report is tailored to the requirements of the European Commission and formulated in such a way that it will be accepted by both the project team and the funding agency. The final validation step ensures that the results have been internally reviewed and fed back into the system – a requirement that many other providers overlook.
Deriving recommendations
Well-founded and implementable
The ethics matrix yields concrete, prioritized measures – with recipients and timeframes. It’s not about “improving data protection,” but about who implements what by when.
Creating the report
Documents, systems, media
The ethaas Ethics Report condenses the entire process into a review-proof document – from the ethics matrix to concrete measures, clear enough to stand on its own without explanation.
Debriefing
Feedback and conclusion
How was it, how is it, and how do we do it next time? Project conclusion with debriefing, handover of results, and feedback for the continuous refinement of the ethaas process.