How the History of the Internet Could Inform the Future of Democracy and AI

Jan 16, 2024News

The discussion continues the Burnes Center’s Rebooting Democracy in the Age of AI Lecture Series, hosted by Beth Simone Noveck, and kicks off The Internet We Deserve, a new lecture series moderated by John Battelle that features notable business, policy, technology and academic leaders exploring the evolution of the Internet.

Vinton G. Cerf is widely known as one of the “Fathers of the Internet.” Cerf is the co-designer of the TCP/IP protocols and the architecture of the Internet. Today he is Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google.

John Battelle is a Senior Fellow at the Burnes Center for Social Change and a Professor of Practice of Northeastern’s College of Arts, Media and Design. He is an entrepreneur, journalist, professor and author who has founded or co-founded seven media and technology businesses.

Rebooting Democracy in the Age of AI Lecture Series talks with innovative designers, thinkers, and those changemakers working to “do democracy” differently in the age of artificial intelligence. Conversations explore how machine learning, natural language processing and generative AI can enable more participatory and inclusive ways of solving problems. Through online and in-person conversations with pioneers working to democratize power in governments, schools and workplaces, these conversations aim to address how to use new technologies to strengthen democracy.

To learn more about the series and read our blog on AI, democracy and governance, visit: https://rebootdemocracy.ai/.

BGF honored Vint Cerf as the 2019 World Leader in AIWS. He is a BGF Global Enlightenment Leader.