AI and Society

Artificial Intelligence (AI) promises to make improvements to our lives in so many ways, including enhancing efficiencies in the workplace, generating productivity gains and having a positive impact on our wellbeing.

It also promises to help with even bigger issues like uncovering criminal activity and solving crimes, dramatically influencing healthcare, addressing global challenges, and reducing global inequities and extreme poverty.

AI promises to have a far-reaching beneficial impact in our society. This evokes not only excitement but also fear. There are fears around privacy, trust, freedom of speech and the usage of AI and its regulation.

The 2020 Gibbons Memorial Lecture Series will discuss the fears and excitement of AI today and in the future, and the impacts it could have both on and in our society.

There are four lectures in the series on 30 September, 7 October, 14 October and 21 October - lectures commence at 6.00pm.

Please note that we will have some refreshments after each lecture at 7pm in the Basement Foyer of the Library Building (109-B20).

30 September - Our future with AI - Professor Michael Witbrock

There’s been dramatic progress in learning skills, such as object recognition, translation and speech, and in difficult but uncomplicated tasks like playing chess, Go and video games. Traditional AI focused on improving complex tasks, using knowledge and reasoning, that have driven human success.

In this talk, Professor Michael Witbrock from the School of Computer Science at the University of Auckland will discuss these paths to broad AI and explore Aotearoa’s potential to make sure of a positive outcome.

7 October - Big data: Transparency and reliability - Professor Tim Dare

There is near consensus in the emerging field of data ethics that processes and systems must be transparent and explainable to a wide range of stakeholders.

In this talk, Professor Tim Dare from the Faculty of Arts at the University of Auckland will discuss why transparency and explainability have become central to data ethics and the reasons there are to question that centrality. Professor Dare will also discuss why we should be more concerned with reliability and with how automated systems compare, ethically, and with alternative ways of doing the tasks which might be done by automated systems.

14 October - Learining to adapt to changes in this dynamic world - Yun Sing Koh

Much of scientific research involves the generation and testing of hypotheses that can facilitate the development of accurate models for a system. In machine learning the automated building of accurate models is desired, however traditional machine learning often assumes that the underlying systems are static and unchanging over time.

In this talk, Dr Yun Sing Koh from the School of Computer Science at the University of Auckland will discuss research in the area of data streams and how we adapt to changes in the data.

21 October - Social media, AI, and society: Some psychological insights - Associate Professor Kumar Yogeeswaran

As advanced digital technologies become an indispensable part of nearly all aspects of everyday living, it is essential to consider the downstream effects on society.

In this talk, Associate Professor Kumar Yogeeswaran from the College of Science at the University of Canterbury will consider social scientific evidence on how these indispensable technologies shape people’s attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours.