Boston Global Forum’s 2018 Leader in AI World Society is Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Secretary-General Angel Gurría. This award is presented to honorees who show commendable leadership and forward-thinking in AI. This year marks the first time this award will be presented.
Secretary-General Gurría was appointed head of the OECD in 2006 and, during his tenure, the organization has given much thought to the future of AI. In 2017, he declared the OECD’s intention to work with Germany and other G20 leaders on policies for “Industry 4.0” – the digitization occurring now across a wide array of economic sectors. Last October, the OECD hosted the AI: Intelligence Machines, Smart Policies conference that invited experts from around the world to discuss the ethics, economics, and policy of AI. For these and many more initiatives, and for his proven dedication to creating the best possible future, we are honored to present Secretary-General Angel Gurria with this award.
The award will be formally announced at the 2018 BGF-G7 Summit Conference, which will take place on April 25th, 2018 from 8:30am-noon at the Harvard University Faculty Club. The theme of this year’s Conference is AI and the AIWS 7-Layer Model to Build Next Generation Democracy.
Have you ever stopped to think about how smart your dog really is? AI researchers certainly have. Scientists at the University of Washington have been training AI neural networks to analyze and even predict canine behavior. By using a GoPro and Microphone, the researchers were able to collect data and teach AI how to identify ‘walkable surfaces,’ analyze dogs’ movements, and even predict their next moves.
The idea is that dogs are capable of tasks that are outside the realm of even the most advanced AI today – guiding the disabled, searching for missing people for drugs, and more. While much of AI research is dedicated to replicating human tasks, research like this opens up a new set of possibilities. (And it also might teach us something about our furry friends).
The biggest tech news this week was Mark Zuckerberg’s testimony before the U.S. Congress. Zuckerberg was called in front of both the Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee, in response to the news that Cambridge Analytica had stolen data from about 87 million Facebook users. The New York Times clocked the meetings in at a total of ten hours.
Congressional leaders hit Zuckerberg with hundreds of questions, mostly about Facebook’s data-collecting and targeted advertising practices. Reviews of the testimony have been mixed. Some point to the apparent lack of tech knowledge in Congress, with questions like one from Sen. Lindsey Graham, asking “Is Twitter the same as what you do?”; or point a finger at Zuckerberg for question-dodging answers. Either way, Facebook is now under more scrutiny than ever. After his time on Capitol Hill, the Facebook founder was called to Brussels, where the European Parliament wants to ask him similar questions.
When asked about what can be done to combat fake news spread via Facebook, Zuckerberg suggested that AI can help by flagging potential hate speech and misinformation. AIWS also believes that artificial intelligence can be a powerful tool in combating fake news. At the same time, we also believe in the responsible management of online data and encourage everyone to follow our Ethical Code of Conduct for Cyber Peace and Security.
AI is changing the way we live – and now it’s changing the way cows live, too. A Dutch company called Connecterra has created the Intelligent Dairy Farmer’s Assistant, or “Ida,” an AI-driven sensor device to help farmers keep tabs on their herds. Originally tested in Europe, the company is now introducing Ida to farms in the U.S.
Behind the sensors, which some farmers have dubbed “cow fitbits,” is a Google’s TensorFlow software. Using Ida, farmers are able to track the movement health of hundreds of cows at a time, making it easier to treat any who become ill. Some farmers remain skeptical, however, with one man telling the Washington Post he “can spot a cow across a room that don’t feel great just by looking in her eyes.” While it may not be accepted by everyone, AI like Ida could change farming.
The Club de Madrid has announced a partnership with the Varkey Foundation, an organization dedicated to improving access to quality education worldwide. The partnership began this past March and is designed to bring together top educational policy makers in order to expand better, more inclusive education worldwide. According to CdM:
“The overall objective of this new area is to channel the collective knowledge of multiple stakeholders, WLA-CdM Members and experts, towards a set of policy proposals highlighting education as a tool for building inclusive and peaceful communities from a Shared Societies perspective.”
Boston Global Forum and the Michael Dukakis Institute for Leadership congratulate both parties on their partnership. We also believe in the importance of global education initiatives, which is the reason MDI established the Global Citizenship Education Network.
U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres, a member of Club de Madrid, has been urging world leaders to consider the consequences of emerging technologies. In February, he called for global rules and norms to minimize the impact of cyber warfare on civilians. In a speech at the University of Lisbon, his alma mater, he said:
“I am absolutely convinced that, differently from the great battles of the past, which opened with a barrage of artillery or aerial bombardment, the next war will begin with a massive cyber attack to destroy military capacity… and paralyze basic infrastructure such as the electric networks.”
“Artificial Intelligence has the potential to accelerate progress towards a dignified life, in peace and prosperity, for all people,” he said this past October. “The time has arrived for all of us – governments, industry and civil society – to consider how artificial intelligence will affect our future.”
We applaud the Secretary-General’s forward thinking – world leaders should certainly be considering the wide-ranging implications that artificial intelligence will have. Because of this, AIWS and MDI have partnered with Club de Madrid. AIWS is collaborating with CdM on their Next Generation Democracy initiative, which considers the increasing challenges democratic governments around the world are facing today.
When considering artificial intelligence and police, most may think of Robocop. AI may be coming to a police department near you, but it will likely be a bit more subtle. Companies are developing facial recognition software for police body cameras that could allow officers to ID suspects in real time. Police would provide the AI with the suspect’s image, obtained from a mugshot, surveillance footage, or witness description. If the AI-equipped body camera finds spots someone with matching features, it would then alert officers of the suspect’s presence.
Similar technologies are already used by a number of U.S. law enforcement agencies, including the New York Police Department. Some departments are also using the technology for a broader application: predictive policing. By analyzing criminal records, geographic data, and other factors such as weather and time of day, some are touting software that could (in theory) predict crime before it happens. This too, has drawn fierce criticism from civil rights activists. There is concern that the software is inaccurate or even racially biased.
This technology is already widely adopted in China whose largest AI company, SenseTime, has developed software that allows authorities to recognize citizens and track their movements in real time. This has drawn criticism from human rights activists who think that the government is using the technology to target its critics. Meanwhile, here in the United States, privacy advocates are raising their own concerns. While this technology could be useful in fighting (or preventing) crime, it is essential that it is developed and utilized ethically, to prevent its misuse.
On April 2, AIWS hosted a Roundtable in Tokyo, Japan with top AI researchers and thinkers. Among the many topics covered were AIWS’s 7-layer model for AI, cyber security, the proliferation of fake news, and increased technological competition with China. Nobue Mita, founding representative of BGF Japan, coordinated and organized this meeting.
Involved in the discussion were:
Tuan Nguyen, CEO of Boston Global Forum and co-founder of AIWS
Nobue Mita, BGF Japan Founding Representative
Dr. Kazuo Yano, Chief Engineer of R&D Group, Hitachi Ltd.
Ambassador Shunji Yanai, International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Former Japanese Ambassador the the U.S.
Professor Koichi Hamada, Yale University and Special Advisor to PM Shinzo Abe
Tsuneo Watanabe, Senior Fellow of the Sasagawa Peace Foundation
Waichi Sekiguchi, Nikkei Shimbun journalist
Shunsuki Aoki, CEO of Yukai Engineering
Satoshi Amagai, CEO of Mofiria Corportation
Kei Yamamoto, CEO of D-Ocean, Inc.
Masahiro Fukuhara, CEO and founder of the Institution for a Global Society
MiyukiInoue,Asahi Shinbun journalist
See the meeting’s agenda and watch the entire round table discussion below:
A new documentary, Do You Trust This Computer?, explores the potential risks artificial intelligence could pose to humanity. The film is the work of Chris Pain, best known for his documentary Who Killed the Electric Car?
Paine includes interviews with several leading AI experts, but one of the most-thought provoking is with tech entrepreneur Elon Musk:
“The least scary future I can think of is one where we have at least democratized AI, because if one company or small group of people manages to develop godlike digital superintelligence, they could take over the world,” said Musk.
Musk also expressed his fear of an AI evolving into an “immortal dictator” that humanity could lose control over. He has been promoting the documentary on Twitter and posted a quote from Frankenstein that sums up his worries:
The Artificial Intelligence World Society is dedicated to thinking about these risks and developing ethical standards to prevent them. If AI is designed safely and ethically, we can avoid its misuse or loss of control. We also agree with Musk’s sentiment about “democratized AI,” which is why we continue to work with policymakers and thought leaders around the world to ensure that new technology standards are shared openly and benefits everyone.
Do You Trust This Computer is free to watch on its website this weekend and will be available to rent thereafter.
