On AiR: IR in the age of AI: Recent Episodes

Medlir Mema, Chris Lamont, and Young Diogenes. Art by Aubrie Mema.

The podcast at the intersection of International Relations and Artificial Intelligence.

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In this episode, Medlir sits down with Dr. Elke Schwarz—Professor of Political Theory at Queen Mary University of London and author of Death Machines: The Ethics of Violent Technologies—to explore how AI is transforming not only the tools of war, but the very way we understand conflict, responsibility, and humanity itself. We also explore the rise of apocalyptic narratives surrounding AI—what Dr. Schwarz calls “techno-eschatology.” Why are end-times stories so dominant in our cultural imagination? What political possibilities do they shut down?

Links:

Eichmann’s inheritance – On AI and autonomous weapons in a darkening world
Gaza war: Israel using AI to identify human targets raising fears that innocents are being caught in the net
Beyond Law: Reaffirming the Centrality of Ethics in War
The (im)possibility of responsible military AI governance
From blitzkrieg to blitzscaling: Assessing the impact of venture capital dynamics on military norms
The Silicon Valley venture capitalists who want to ‘move fast and break things’ in the defence industry
Conjuring the End: Techno-eschatology and the Power of Prophecy

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In this episode, Eugene Tan from RSIS Singapore and Chris explore how advances in aviation technology are transforming our airspace. With cargo drones and urban air taxis taking to the skies, how will an increasing number of autonomous or remotely piloted aircraft safely share the airspace with traditional aviation? What new security, privacy, and safety risks do such air mobility systems bring? And how will regulatory and governance regimes adapt to these challenges?

Show Notes:

https://www.caas.gov.sg/who-we-are/newsroom/Detail/asia-pacific-region-adopts-reference-materials-for-the-regulation-of-air-taxis-and-drones
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/china-low-altitude-economy-air-taxi-drones-policy-regulations-5419456
https://www.mlit.go.jp/koku/content/001757082.pdf
https://www.euronews.com/2025/11/05/latest-drone-sightings-force-flight-cancellations-at-belgiums-main-airport

This episode is part of a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C) 25K04983 project “Global Governance of Civil Aviation in the Indo-Pacific” 2025-2027

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Political anthropologist Eduardo Albrecht joins us to explore how artificial intelligence is quietly transforming the way governments think, decide, and rule. From the rise of “political machines” to the idea of a new Third House of democracy, we unpack what happens when citizens become data—and how power itself is being rewritten in the age of automation.

Links:

https://eduardoalbrecht.com/
Political Automation: An Introduction to AI in Government and Its Impact on Citizens

In this episode, Chris Lamont sits down with Oscar Avatare and Akshay Chalana, co-founders of Saphira AI, for an in-depth exploration of AI robotics transitioning from controlled laboratory environments into complex, real-world applications. Drawing on their experience building hardware controls and virtualization systems for companies including Tesla and Amazon, as well as their work on Hyperloop technology—where they worked on challenges like making propulsion, braking, and electronics function in vacuum chambers—Oscar and Akshay examine the critical challenges of establishing robust safety frameworks and industry standards for autonomous systems operating in unpredictable settings. The conversation also delves into how geopolitical tensions and international competition are reshaping the global robotics landscape, influencing both technological development priorities and regulatory approaches across different regions.

Links:

https://blog.saphira.ai/mobile-robot-safety-standards-understanding-iso-3691-4-(driverless-industrial-trucks)-and-r15-08-(industrial-mobile-robots)-implementation/#1-a-shifting-landscape-in-safety-standards
https://www.reuters.com/sports/robots-race-play-football-crash-collapse-chinas-robot-olympics-2025-08-15/

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Why do people sometimes trust AI—even when it's prone to error? In this episode, Medlir explores this question and more with business communication expert Peter Cardon, author of Business Communication: Developing Leaders for a Networked World and co-author of Business and Professional Communication: Putting People First. They dive into how AI is reshaping interpersonal relationships, communication, and public confidence in institutions. From emotional authenticity to regulatory challenges, this conversation unpacks the complex ways AI is influencing how we connect, believe, and lead.

Links:

Peter W. Cardon
Articles by Peter Cardon
2025 Edelman Trust Barometer

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Four years ago, two Tokyo-based academics and a Diogenes-inspired persona sparked a conversation that became The Age of AI podcast. Today we celebrate our 100th episode—a milestone reflecting on humanity's journey through the LLM explosion, AI's disruptive rise, and the ethical crossroads we now face. Our co-host Young Diogenes, re-trained and more philosophical than ever, is asked a deceptively simple question: "In a world increasingly shaped by machine logic, what makes us human?"

From civilizational myopia to AI governance challenges, from ChatGPT's impact on how we think and learn, to speculation about AI running for office, this episode captures both the promise and peril of our AI-shaped future, as well as suggestions by YD on how to potentially avoid a negative future.

Whether you've been with us since the beginning or are discovering us now, join us in exploring what it means to stay human in the age of artificial intelligence.

Two Types of AI Existential Risk: Decisive and Accumulative
The Gentle Singularity - Sam Altman
Existential Threat of Generative AI - ChatGPT and Generative AI Legal Research Guide - LibGuides at University of Arizona Law Library

AIGovernance #AIEthics #AIandSociety #FutureOfAI #AIPhilosophy #AgeOfAI #Podcast #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #LLM #Diogenes #TechEthics #FutureOfAI #AIandSociety #AI2030 #AIoptimism #AIgovernance

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What does it mean for Europe to be digitally sovereign in a world dominated by tech giants and geopolitical power struggles? In this episode, Oskar Gstrein joins Chris to unpack that question. Against the backdrop of U.S.-China tech competition and shifting global alliances, they explore the boundaries of digital sovereignty and delve into the emerging idea of data autonomy as a guiding principle for Europe’s digital strategy.

Links:

https://pure.rug.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/1189676103/EERR2023028.pdf
https://dig.watch/updates/denmark-moves-to-replace-microsoft-software-as-part-of-digital-sovereignty-strategy

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With the Trump administration reversing previous US AI strategy with a focus on security and US-China competition, Chris sits down with Medlir and Caryn at the Global Governance Institute in Brussels to analyze the new administration's approaches to AI.

Links:

https://www.justsecurity.org/113944/what-comes-next-after-trumps-ai-deals-in-the-gulf/
https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/679852/trump-ai-safety-institute-name-mission-change

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This week, we're talking to Egor Olte Anu, CEO of Volt.ai, the company making waves for using artificial intelligence to detect and stop physical threats as they happen. From violent crimes to medical emergencies, Volt’s tech is being hailed as a game-changer for public safety. But as their systems get smarter, the questions get more urgent: What about privacy? How far is too far when it comes to surveillance in the name of safety? Tune in for a conversation on innovation, ethics, and safety.

Links:

https://www.volt.ai/about
https://www.linkedin.com/in/egoro/
https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbestechcouncil/2025/01/10/safer-schools-tech-strategies-for-digital-and-physical-security/
https://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/volt-ai-discusses-physical-security-data-privacy-and-future-of-company
https://wjla.com/news/local/attempted-assassination-trump-pennsylvania-rally-security-shooting-prevention-threats-ai-artificial-intelligence-technology-system-track-shooter-suspect-weapons-guns-school-detect-video-data-real-time-maryland

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Medlir sits down with Jesse Anglen, CEO and Founder of Rapid Innovation, a company that helps entrepreneurs build AI and blockchain-powered products. They discuss the transition into a digital workforce and how best to prepare for a post-work economy.

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesseanglen/
https://www.rapidinnovation.io/about-us

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Adalberto Gonzalez, AI Strategic Advisor for Design Thinking Japan, joins Chris for a conversation on his pioneering work on GenAI for Accenture in North America. We discuss his more recent work with Design Thinking Japan and his AI Signal’s comprehensive report that tells us where breakthroughs in AI will have the greatest impact. Plus, what worries him most and what excites him most about these developments.

Links:

AI Signals 2025 Report
Design Thinking Japan, Brittany Arthur, CEO

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As Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) moves closer to reality, the world faces a crucial question: Who—if anyone—should govern it? In this episode of Age of AI, host Medlir Mema sits down with governance expert Justin Bullock to explore the challenges of regulating AGI at a global scale. Could a Global AGI Agency provide the oversight we need, or is international cooperation on AI doomed to fail? From the risks of unchecked AGI development to the hurdles of enforcing global AI policy, this conversation unpacks the future of AI governance and the stakes for humanity.

Links:

https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/630b0421cd31598bbf8f31e7/67866b3ce4e06de6fadc3c45_2025-GGI-Bullock-Global-AGI-Agency.pdf
https://www.globalgovernance.eu/ggi-education/aigg
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/5hApNw5f7uG8RXxGS/the-open-agency-model

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In this episode of Age of AI, host Medlir Mema sits down with Caryn Lusinchi—AI auditor, policy advisor, and former AI leader at Meta and Google—to explore the tensions between innovation and regulation. Can international AI governance truly work, or are we heading toward fragmented, sovereign AI ecosystems? Join us as we discuss the EU AI Act, the Paris AI Action Summit, the rise of national AI programs, and the future of AI regulation in an era of accelerating change.

Links:

https://www.globalgovernance.eu/publications/ais-fast-forward-button-can-we-harness-innovation-without-sacrificing-safety
https://www.globalgovernance.eu/publications/the-eu-ai-act-two-steps-forward-one-step-back
https://www.cnas.org/publications/commentary/the-rising-tide-of-sovereign-ai

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In this episode, David Mas, Chief AI Officer at Make.org, and Medlir explore how AI can strengthen democratic participation and institutional transparency. They discuss the ambitious AI for Democracy Democratic Commons initiative, consider how AI can help counter the erosion of democratic legitimacy, and examine how democracies can respond to weaponization of AI by authoritarian regimes.

Links:

AI For Democracy Democratic Commons
AI & Democracy: Insights from Make.org’s Roundtable Discussion

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Medlir is joined by Dr. Nafiseh (Cati) Molaei, a Postdoctoral Scholar specializing in Biomedical Data Science at Northwestern University to discuss how AI is reshaping the medical landscape. From diagnosing complex diseases to personalizing treatment plans, AI is driving innovations that were once thought impossible.

Links:

https://datascience.uchicago.edu/events/nafiseh-cati-mollaei-uchicago-aiscience-schmidt-fellows-speaker-series/
https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/epdf/10.1377/hlthaff.2024.01003
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-03097-1

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Today we dive into the evolving conversation on AI risk and governance. Our guests, Torben Swoboda and Risto Uuk, discuss the challenges of defining AI risk, the debate over acceptable thresholds, and common critiques of the existential risk perspective. We also examine the feasibility of global AI governance and historical parallels that may guide our path forward.

Links:

Examining Popular Arguments Against AI Existential Risk: A Philosophical Analysis
Pause Giant AI Experiments: An Open Letter

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In this episode Ritwik Gupta of the Berkeley AI Research Lab returns to talk with Chris about what DeepSeek really means for the AI Industry, Trump’s recent Stargate AI initiative, US-China AI competition, policy responses to DeepSeek, and where we should be looking for the next big disruptive event in the world of AI.

Links:

https://arxiv.org/abs/2411.14425
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-hawley-act-threatens-ai-innovation

DeepSeek #Stargate #Policy

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In this episode we’re joined by Jeremy Tamanini, founder of Dual Citizen LLC, to explore the intersection of AI and environmental sustainability during the Trump 2.0 era. From the environmental impacts of AI infrastructure, to innovative practices and emerging legislation, this conversation dives deep into how AI can be both a challenge and a tool for sustainability.

Links:

Jeremy Tamanini, Dual Citizen: https://www.greenpolicyplatform.org/person/jeremy-tamanini
Anatomy of an AI System: https://anatomyof.ai/
Epoch AI: https://epoch.ai/
Navigating New Horizons: https://www.unep.org/resources/global-foresight-report
How AI Is Fueling a Boom in Data Centers and Energy Demand The Environmental Impacts of AI -- Primer: https://time.com/6987773/ai-data-centers-energy-usage-climate-change/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Keywords: AI sustainability, environmental impact, Trump 2.0, Dual Citizen LLC, responsible AI, AI legislation, sustainable innovation, climate and technology.

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Medlir Mema engages in an insightful discussion with Matt Van Itallie, the CEO of Sema Software, a company at the forefront of revolutionizing software analytics and risk management in the age of artificial intelligence. Sema has transformed the field of software analytics and set new standards for monitoring and risk management in AI-driven development. Matt shares insights into the evolving responsibilities of CTOs, the creation of transformative tools like the GenAI Code Monitor and Generative AI Bill of Materials, and the critical strategies companies need to address both technological and geopolitical challenges in the age of rapid innovation.

Links:

Matt Van Itallie
Sema Software

Keywords:
AI innovation, software analytics, CTO leadership, GenAI Code Monitor, AI risk management

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Medlir sits with Iva Mema to discuss how AI shapes architectural design and public policy decision-making. They also explore the risks of perpetuating discrimination through biased algorithms, the potential for job displacement, and the over-reliance on technology that might diminish human creativity and expertise.

https://www.ivamema.com/

AI, #Algorithmic_Bias; #Architecture; #Public_Policy; #Smart_Cities

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Medlir is joined by Melanie Rideout, a climate tech expert and Global Governance Institute (GGI) fellow, who shares her insights from working with Shayp and international organizations like the Red Cross and UN bodies. Together they explore the opportunities, challenges, and complexities of leveraging technology for global development and climate action.

SustainableDevelopment #EmergingTech #ClimateAction #GlobalDevelopment #AIforGood

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In today's episode, Medlir chats with Elena Ardelean. We discuss the Matrix Framework for Inclusive AI in Sustainable Development, focusing on three pillars: the regulatory environment, digital infrastructure, and the empowerment of youth as the next generation of changemakers. We further explore how lessons from AI's rapid evolution inform strategies for equitable integration into the future of work and daily life. Finally, we highlight how governments—particularly in developing countries—are leveraging AI today, and discuss steps to ensure sustainable, inclusive AI adoption in the future.

Inclusive AI; #Sustainable Development; #Digital Infrastructure; #Future of Work, #AI for Good

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Chris and Medlir talk with Ritwik Gupta about what policymakers get wrong about AI governance and what we should be thinking about when it comes to risk and regulation. Ritwik also shares his wide-ranging experience in working on AI in the context of chaotic environments in disaster response and national security.

Show Notes:

https://ritwikgupta.me/
https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.17216

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Chris talks with Marietje Schaake about her new book The Tech Coup: How to Save Democracy from Silicon Valley and explores the nexus between Big Tech, democracy, and human rights. In particular, Marietje shares with Chris ideas and strategies for recentering the public interest in the relationship between big tech and governments, the geopolitics of technology, and recent developments in the global governance of AI.

Links:

https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691241173/the-tech-coup
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/un-ai-global-digital-compact-by-ian-bremmer-and-marietje-schaake-2024-10

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Welcome back to our podcast! In this episode Medlir and Dr. Gloria Shkurti Ozdemir discuss her recently released book "Artificial Intelligence Arms Dynamics: The Case of the U.S. and China Rivalry." Their discussion dives into the latest AI-related developments in Turkey, the state of US-China competition in AI, as well as some other delightful tangents.

Links:

https://www.setav.org/en/experts/gloria-shkurti
https://www.setav.org/en/the-future-of-ai-policies-in-the-us-and-implications-for-turkiye
https://www.setav.org/en/artificial-intelligence-arms-dynamics-the-case-of-the-us-and-china-rivalryhttps://www.setav.org/en/crossing-the-rubicon-consumption-costs-of-artificial-intelligence-and-environmental-security
https://www.ageofaipodcast.com/1727342/episodes/9850363-s2e7-turkey-s-emergence-as-a-regional-ai-power

Tags: #AI; #US-China; #Turkey;

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Medlir shares insights with Chris from the UN Summit of the Future. They discuss the Pact for the Future, the Global Digital Compact, and the Declaration on Future Generations. In addition, Medlir and Chris also discuss California’s recently vetoed AI safety legislation and the proposed US national AI Civil Rights Act.

Links:

https://www.un.org/techenvoy/global-digital-compact
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-24/openai-pitched-white-house-on-unprecedented-data-center-buildout
https://apnews.com/article/california-ai-safety-measures-veto-newsom-92a715a5765d1738851bb26b247bf493
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/openai-authors-get-rules-set-for-inspecting-ai-training-data
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty-issues/research/2024/07/29/taylor-francis-ai-deal-sets-worrying-precedent
https://www.markey.senate.gov/view/senator-markey-hosts-press-conference-to-introduce-his-ai-civil-rights-act

Tags:
UN Summit of the Future; Pact for the Future; Global Digital Compact; AI Governance

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In the first episode of Season 9, Medlir and Chris revisit the topic of AI agents, AI and US-China relations, and also China’s recent moves in regulating AI. They then wrap up with a discussion of the Summit of the Future, and AI and Sustainable Development.

Links:

https://www.un.org/en/summit-of-the-future
https://www.globalgovernance.eu/education/aigsd
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2024/09/06/agentic-ai-the-next-big-breakthrough-thats-transforming-business-and-technology/
https://usun.usmission.gov/what-they-are-saying-more-than-50-un-member-states-join-u-s-in-urging-support-for-proposed-u-s-drafted-general-assembly-resolution-on-ai/
https://apnews.com/article/un-china-us-artificial-intelligence-access-resolution-56c559be7011693390233a7bafb562d1
https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-artificial-intelligence-safety-resolution-vote-8079fe83111cced0f0717fdecefffb4d
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3265158/china-uae-hi-tech-cooperation-can-expect-close-us-scrutiny-pressure-experts
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-02/microsoft-ai-deal-with-uae-s-g42-at-risk-over-national-security-fears

UNSummitoftheFuture #AgenticAI #China #SDG #SustainableDevelopment

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Maria Santacaterina and Medlir discuss the impact of generative AI on businesses. They ask the question whether the massive financial investment in generative AI will pay off for these businesses. Is the promise of AI, hype or real?

Links:

https://www.santacaterinaconsulting.com/
https://www.amazon.com/Adaptive-Resilience-Maria-Santacaterina/dp/1119898188
https://www-businessinsider-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.businessinsider.com/ai-return-investment-disappointing-goldman-sachs-report-2024-6?amp
https://www.goldmansachs.com/intelligence/pages/gen-ai-too-much-spend-too-little-benefit.html

Tags: Generative AI, investment, AI hype, BigTech, future of work

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In July 2024, Japan’s Ministry of Defense unveiled its first basic policy document on the use of artificial intelligence and a comprehensive strategy to enhance Japan’s cyber defense capabilities. In this episode Dr. Ryo Hinata-Yamaguchi of the University of Tokyo, joins us to talk about how AI fits into Japan’s military strategy.

Links:

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/07/02/japan/sdf-cybersecurity/#:~:text=In%20the%20new%20policy%2C%20the,and%20in%20unmanned%20military%20assets.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240705_05/
(In Japanese) https://www.mod.go.jp/j/press/news/2024/07/02a.html

Japan #militaryAI #artificialintelligence

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Medlir sits down with Dr. Paige Arthur, Director of Global Programming at Columbia Global, and co-author of AI for Peace (with Branka Panic), to discuss how recent AI innovations can contribute to conflict prevention and peace. They also explore the opportunities and challenges that technologies pose for human rights and curbing hate speech.

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/paige-arthur-6269001b/
https://www.aiforpeace.org/
https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.1201/9781003359982/ai-peace-branka-panic-paige-arthur
https://www.usip.org/publications/2023/12/role-ai-peacebuilding
https://www.sipri.org/research/armament-and-disarmament/emerging-military-and-security-technologies/responsible-innovation-ai-peace-and-security
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/peace/documents/20231208-messaggio-57giornatamondiale-pace2024.html

AI, #Human_Rights, #Peace, #Misinformation, #Hate_Speech

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This week is our annual Diogenes Awards, where we look at AI in film and television (and sometimes other amusing tangents). We discuss the content that we enjoyed over the last 18 months, and that we think our audience will enjoy the most. We also give our top recommendation in each category.

Chris talks with Mihalis Kritikos of the European Commission on Artificial Intelligence Ethics and Trustworthy Governance of AI. Mihalis sheds light on how he got started working on AI governance during the Covid-19 pandemic, the ethics of AI, the EU AI Act, and also AI surveillance in the workplace.

Links:

https://books.emeraldinsight.com/page/detail/ethical-ai-surveillance-in-the-workplace/?k=9781837537730
https://epthinktank.eu/2020/04/22/ten-technologies-to-fight-covid-19/
https://epthinktank.eu/2020/12/25/what-if-ai-could-improve-thermal-imaging-to-help-fight-coronavirus/
https://epthinktank.eu/2020/12/23/what-if-artificial-intelligence-in-medical-imaging-could-accelerate-covid-19-treatment/
https://epthinktank.eu/2020/12/22/what-if-ai-powered-passenger-locator-forms-could-help-stop-the-spread-of-covid-19/
https://epthinktank.eu/2020/12/02/digital-human-rights-and-the-future-of-democracy-lessons-from-the-pandemic/

Chris talks to Maya Sobchuk, GGI non-resident fellow and researcher at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Tokyo about her work on AI and disinformation. In this episode Maya reflects on the history of Russian disinformation campaigns against Ukraine, disinformation in the aftermath of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, and how Ukraine has harnessed its AI know-how and innovation space to counter disinformation.

Link:

https://www.globalgovernance.eu/publications/how-ukraine-uses-ai-to-fight-russian-information-operations
https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/04/08/how-ukraine-is-using-ai-to-fight-russia

Tags: #AI #Ukraine #Russia #disinformation #FIMI #deepfakes

Medlir is joined by Dr. Hannes Mueller to discuss recent developments in conflict prevention. Specifically, we examine how artificial intelligence can help governments detect risk early, predict the likelihood of new conflicts, and prevent older ones from re-emerging.

https://conflictforecast.org/
https://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/303316/1/Mueller%20and%20Rauh_2022.pdf
https://bse.eu/research/working-papers/dynamic-early-warning-and-action-model
https://www.etcalpoly.org/the-pandemic-chronicles/humanism-v-dataism-an-ethical-quandary

For our season opener, Young Diogenes has a chat with Chris and Medlir about some cool new things large language models can now do for us. Specifically, why some companies, like Google with Gemini, are choosing to concentrate on increasingly larger context windows (i.e., the size of the text, music, video prompt, etc., that the AI can parse). And why being able to load an entire book, a movie, or your entire life into the prompt and then have a conversation about these things, might be useful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_EliVUkuFA&t=23s&ab_channel=TwoMinutePapers
https://www.tomsguide.com/ai/i-test-ai-for-a-living-and-googles-new-version-of-gemini-is-a-turning-point-for-the-industry
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2024/04/words-are-flowing-out-like-endless-rain-recapping-a-busy-week-of-llm-news/
https://blog.google/technology/ai/long-context-window-ai-models/

Medlir asks Lukas Andriukaitis, Board member of Lithuania-based Civic Resilience Initiative (CRI), what it means to work and live at the frontier of the new misinformation / disinformation space. They discuss the current atmosphere in the region and beyond, in terms of threat of misinformation/disinformation. They consider both the benefits and the drawbacks of AI-enabled technologies as billions across the world prepare to cast their votes in 2024.

Links:

https://cri.lt/
https://cri.lt/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Chinese-Russian-Disinformation-Efforts-in-Lithuania-and-Taiwan.pdf
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-ai-will-transform-the-2024-elections/
https://www.techuk.org/resource/deepfakes-and-disinformation-what-impact-could-this-have-on-elections-in-2024.html

Tags: AI, emerging tech, election, misinformation, disinformation, Lithuania, Russia, International Relations

Luca Bertuzzi joins Medlir for a discussion on the EU AI Act passed by the European Parliament on March 13th. Among other things, they discuss the likely impact of the law on innovation and governance within the EU and abroad, as well as criticisms that the act fails to address concerns regarding human rights and civil liberties.

Links:

https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2024/03/13/lawmakers-approve-ai-act-with-overwhelming-majority?utm_content=buffer785c3&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin.com&utm_campaign=buffer
https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/joint-statement-ai-act-fails-migrants-and-people-on-the-move/
https://www.euractiv.com/section/artificial-intelligence/opinion/eus-much-heralded-ai-act-agreed-by-eu-parliament-but-serious-human-rights-holes-in-law-remain/

EUAIACT; #AIgovernance; #innovation; #human rights; #emergingtech; #EU;

Andrej Zwitter and Oskar Gstrein share with Chris what they will be keeping an eye out for in the AI regulatory space in 2024. They also discuss their latest work on the politics and governance of big data and artificial intelligence and their newly published Handbook on the Governance Politics and Governance of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence. In this discussion Andrej and Oskar explore the EU AI Act and challenges that datafication and algorithmic logics pose for governance, privacy, and human agency, and ponder the question: what does it mean to stay human in the age of AI?

Show Notes:

Andrej Zwitter and Oskar Gstrein (eds.), Research Handbook on Politics and Governance of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, Edward Elgar, 2023, Partially Open Access.
Dirk Helbing, Thomas Beschorner, Bruno Frey, Andreas Diekmann, Thilo Hagendorff, Peter Seele, Sarah Spiekermann-Hoff, Jeroen van den Hoven, and Andrej Zwitter. “Triage 4.0: On Death Algorithms and Technological Selection. Is Today’s Data- Driven Medical System Still Compatible with the Constitution?” Journal of European CME Vol. 10, no. 1, 2021
Oskar Gstrein and Andrej Zwitter, “Extraterritorial application of the GDPR: Promoting European values or power?”, Internet Policy Review Vol. 10, Issue 3, 2021
Andrej Zwitter, Oskar Gstrein, Evan Yap, “Digital Identity and the Blockchain: Universal Identity Management and the concept of the 'Self-Sovereign' Individual”, Frontiers in Blockchain, Vol. 3/26, 2020

Links:

European AI Regulation: Brussels Effect versus Human Dignity?
- Also available here: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4214358
How to protect privacy in a datafied society? A presentation of multiple legal and conceptual approaches

Medlir sits down with Dr. Raluca Csernatoni and Dr. Marijn Hoijtink to discuss the escalating ‘innovation race’ among corporate giants. They discuss AI’s contribution to the rise in power of the private tech sector vs. the state, as well as the ‘existential threat’ and ‘superintelligence’ narratives around foundational AI models and how these shape specific socio-technical imaginaries of the future. They also dive into AI’s impact on geopolitical and military power, including Sino-American competition, and the rise of AI ‘nationalism’ or ‘sovereignty’.

Links:

https://www.uantwerpen.be/nl/personeel/marijn-hoijtink_23930/
https://carnegieeurope.eu/experts/1709
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14650045.2023.2224235
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/17816858211059251
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/373378810_Whose_insecurity_Gender_race_and_coloniality_in_European_security_policies_Introduction_to_the_Special_Issue
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13600826.2023.2261466
https://www.ispionline.it/en/publication/the-comeback-of-industrial-policy-the-next-geopolitical-great-game-145627

Tags: #AI, #warfare, #algorithmicviolence, #EUAIAct, #AInationalism #innovationrace

Medlir is joined by Baptiste Alloui-Cros, founder of the Strand Simulations Group and a wargame designer, to discuss how AI is likely to impact how we think, strategize, and prepare for war.

Links:

https://strandsimulationsgroup.com/
https://www.militarystrategymagazine.com/article/does-artificial-intelligence-change-the-nature-of-war/
https://www.militarystrategymagazine.com/article/what-is-the-utility-of-the-principles-of-war/

wargaming, #simulation, #AI, #warfare, #strategy

This week Medlir and our guest Rebekah Dowd, an academic, scholar, and author of The Birth of Digital Human Rights: Digitized Data Governance as a Human Rights Issue in the EU, explore how and why the EU became a leader in the realm of digital human rights.

Links:

https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-82969-8
https://gdpr.eu/what-is-gdpr/
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/society/20230601STO93804/eu-ai-act-first-regulation-on-artificial-intelligence
https://www.globalgovernance.eu/publications/rolling-back-the-ai-act-is-a-mistake-heres-why

digital human rights, #GDPR, #EU AI Act, #EU, #Big Tech, #data protection

In this episode Chris talks to Arnaud Kurze of Montclair State University, currently a Digital Studies Fellow at the John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress. Arnaud has carried out groundbreaking research in digital humanities, memory studies, and transitional justice and offers his insights into AI and virtual memory spaces, accountability,

Links:

Kluge Fellowship: https://www.loc.gov/programs/john-w-kluge-center/scholars-in-residence/current-scholars-in-residence/
Wilson Center: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/person/arnaud-kurze
Project AROS Lab: https://www.montclair.edu/project-aros-lab/
Project AROS Projects: https://projectaros.net/sandbox/#projects
Guinea Fulbright: https://www.montclair.edu/chss/2023/10/30/professor-receives-fulbright-specialist-program-award/

Medlir and Chris speak with Dr. Joachim Koops of the Global Governance Institute and Leiden University to discuss the launch of the AI Global Governance program. They further discuss the challenges associated with the question of governance more broadly.

Links:

https://www.globalgovernance.eu/about-us
https://www.globalgovernance.eu/education/aigg

Young Diogenes (YD), Medlir and Chris discuss trends and developments in AI for 2023 (Democratization, Personalization, Twinning, GenAI, Multi-modal AI, AI ethics). We also discuss advances in behavioral AI for communications security, weather forecasting, material science, and discussion of the recent chaos at OpenAI (based on reporting by Karen Hao, the final link below provides some really interesting additional details on the events inside OpenAI if you'd like to get caught up).

Crypto Scammers Exploit Gaza Crisis, Deceiving Users in Donation Scam
Abnormal Security CEO on Threat Detection
AI is outperforming our best weather forecasting tech, thanks to DeepMind
DeepMind’s AI Unlocks Potential for New Material Discoveries
The chaos inside OpenAI

(*In our discussion of Deepmind's machine learning method for weather, GraphCast, we mentioned '30-40 thousand parameters'. We intended '30-40 million'.)

Medlir sits down with Emma Morrison and Justin Lynch to discuss ways AI can help analysts in understanding significant events, attributing actions, and presenting usable information to decision-makers, while reflecting on how AI may adversely affect a country's ability to signal credibly, or understand its adversaries intentions accurately.

Links:

https://sais.jhu.edu/kissinger/programs-and-projects/kissinger-center-papers/deterrence-through-ai-enabled-detection-and-attribution
https://www.nscai.gov/
https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/10/14/israel-intelligence-hamas-gaza-border-technology-nato/
https://wavellroom.com/2022/10/28/artificial-intelligence-the-ultimate-deterrence/
https://mwi.westpoint.edu/what-happened-to-iron-dome-a-lesson-on-the-limits-of-technology-at-war/

Medlir discusses the impact of AI on development with Katya Klinova, Head of AI, Labor, and the Economy division of the Partnership on AI. There she oversees (among other things) the AI and Shared Prosperity Initiative, asking how to make AI progress in the workforce more inclusive, as well as the potential impact of AI on the economic growth prospects of low- and middle-income countries.

Links:

Governing AI to Advance Shared Prosperity - published version on the website of Oxford University Press
- Summary
- Preprint
Guidelines for AI and Shared Prosperity

Additional Links:

https://oecd.ai/en/community/katya-klinova
https://oecd.ai/en/wonk/policies-ai-inclusive-growth
https://partnershiponai.org/

Medlir is joined for a wide-ranging conversation on the shifting landscape of AI governance by Dr. Justin Bullock, a Senior Researcher at Convergence Analysis, in the UK. Dr. Bullock brings a wealth of expertise in public administration, artificial intelligence (AI), organizational theory, and management. He is the lead editor of Oxford University Press’ Handbook of AI Governance.

Links:

https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/41989
https://justinbullock.org/academic-works/
https://justinbullock.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Machine-Intelligence-Bureaucracy-and-Human-Control-final.pdf
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/aug/11/ai-tech-designers-tool-communities
https://www.cnas.org/publications/commentary/how-to-prevent-an-ai-catastrophe
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adi8982

YD, Chris, and Medlir discuss some recent uses of AI, to quickly and easily generate political influence campaigns.

Many of us are already aware of the rapidity and volume at which AI can generate content. But in this episode, we discuss some of the ways in which AI quality is improving, as well as some different mechanisms being tested to maximize the intensity and appeal to our emotions and biases.

Links:

Cyber Propaganda & Influence Ops: Rising Asia-Pacific Threats | Security Insider (microsoft.com)
China campaigns target US elections on social media: Microsoft report (cnbc.com)
Six ways that AI could change politics | MIT Technology Review

Medlir is joined by Dr. Joseph Vukov, Associate Director of the Hank Center for the Catholic Intellectual Heritage at Loyola University Chicago, whose research explores questions at the intersection of ethics, neuroscience, and philosophy of mind, and at the intersection of science and religion.

Links:

https://www.scienceforhumans.com/the-team
https://mailchi.mp/scu/itec-handbook
https://www.focolaremedia.com/bookstore/perils-perfection?v=492
https://www.focolaremedia.com/sites/default/files/2023-07/NCP%200179%20-%20The%20Perils%20of%20Perfection%20-%20Preview.pdf
https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2023/03/23/chatgpt-machine-learning-catholic-244953
https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2023/04/17/ai-chat-gpt-catholic-ethics-245071
https://www.hanknexusjournal.com/volume2
https://futurism.com/pope-guide-artificial-intelligence
https://www.scu.edu/institute-for-technology-ethics-and-culture/
https://gizmodo.com/pope-francis-vatican-releases-ai-ethics-1850583076
https://youtu.be/yTlBmm1yosc
https://stories.luc.edu/envisioning-the-future
https://www.scu.edu/media/ethics-center/itec/Ethics-in-the-Age-of-Disruptive-Technologies:An-Operational-Roadmap---ITEC-Handbook-June-2023.pdf

Medlir Mema is joined by Dr. Branka Marijan, a Senior Researcher at Project Ploughshares, where she leads the research on the military and security implications of emerging technologies. Her research interests include trends in warfare, civilian protection, use of drones, and civil-military relations.

Links:

https://www.g20interfaith.org/branka-marijan/
https://www.ploughshares.ca/author/branka-marijan

US-Russia confrontation on AI

https://www.cigionline.org/articles/beyond-ukraine-ai-and-the-next-us-russia-confrontation/

Canada and AWS

https://www.ploughshares.ca/publications/will-canada-step-up-its-diplomatic-efforts-on-military-ai
https://www.ploughshares.ca/publications/no-canadian-leadership-on-autonomous-weapons

AI and civilian protection/regulating military use of AI

https://www.ploughshares.ca/publications/military-ai-and-civilian-protection
https://www.ploughshares.ca/publications/regulating-military-use-of-ai

How do states use digital tools to deceive, disseminate disinformation, and deepen authoritarianism? In this episode Chris talks with Marc Owen Jones about digital authoritarianism in the Middle East, who sheds light on this question and much more in a far-reaching discussion.

Show Notes
https://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/digital-authoritarianism-in-the-middle-east/

Medlir discusses the likely impact of AI and Emerging Tech with Dr. Chris Moran and Dr. Joe Burton, authors of a recent study which argues that talk of an AI-fueled intelligence revolution is premature.

Links:

The US Intelligence Community, Global Security, and AI: From Secret Intelligence to Smart Spying
The Future of Analysis
A.I. Poses ‘Risk of Extinction,’ Industry Leaders Warn
China Is Flirting With AI Catastrophe
Russia's Use of Uncrewed Systems in Ukraine

Young Diogenes, Chris, and Medlir get back to a long-awaited sequel we promised from season 4! (See, we do get back to our promises sometimes. Ha.) We continue exploring the future of AI integration into research, provenance, and other nonsense predictions about the future of AI. Yeah, yeah, feel free to tease us about that later. Medlir and YD get into a 'fight' -- as usual. And we still don't freakin' finish our discussions on provenance! Hey, ya know, you get a bunch of academics in a room...what did you expect? :) Have fun.

Adept Raises $350 Million To Build AI That Learns How To Use Software For You (forbes.com)
Adobe Firefly (Beta)
Four Reasons Data Provenance Is Vital For Analytics And AI (forbes.com)
"Did ChatGPT really say that?": Provenance in the age of Generative AI. | Library Innovation Lab (harvard.edu)
Provenance documentation to enable explainable and trustworthy AI: A literature review | Data Intelligence | MIT Press

Medlir sits down with CrossPlag's Dr. Alejtin Berisha to discuss the challenges of Higher Education in the age of AI and the promise of AI originality detection tools like CrossPlag for educators hoping to incorporate tools like ChatGPT in their curriculum.

Links:

CrossPlag Website
CrossPlag Review
'Everybody is cheating': Why this teacher has adopted an open ChatGPT policy
Professor Flunks All His Students After ChatGPT Falsely Claims It Wrote Their Papers

In this episode Kutoma Wakunuma, Damien Okaibedi Eke, and Simisola Akintoye join Chris to discuss their latest edited volume, Responsible AI in Africa. In this conversation we explore Africa’s exclusion from conversations on AI ethics, epistemic injustice, the concept of Ubuntu, and innovations from Africa’s silicon savannas.

Link(s):

Responsible AI in Africa

Medlir sits down with Dr. Jeannie Johnson, co-founder and Director of the Center for Anticipatory Intelligence (CAI), to discuss CAI’s mission, what it means to create the nation’s first MA program in Anticipatory intelligence, and the importance of combining expertise in national security and geopolitics with cutting-edge instruction in cyber threats, data analytics, and emergent technology.

Links:

Jeannie Johnson Founding Director | Center for Anticipatory Intelligence Associate Professor | Department of Political Science
Utah State University | Center for Anticipatory Intelligence
Dr. Johnson's Ted Talk | Surviving the 21st century with interdisciplinary teams
Cultural Topography: A New Research Tool for Intelligence Analysis

CAI #CTAF #culturaltopographyanalyticframework

Medlir talks with Evrim Tan, the co-author (with Joep Crompvoets) of The new digital era governance: How new digital technologies are shaping public governance,a fantastic recent publication that seeks to draw important distinctions between the 'old' digital era governance and the 'new' AI-based one.

Links:

The new digital era governance
OECD Working Papers on Public Governance

Our lighthearted yearly conversation about Television and Film containing Artificial Intelligence -- featuring the ever delightful Chris, Medlir, and of course the incredibly handsome Young Diogenes. What will these goofballs pick and argue about this year? (Ed. note: probably almost nothing related to the content, eh? zing In seriousness, they cover all of their picks, sling around a few digs at each other, and include some interesting surprises for our listeners. Thank you all so much for listening!)

Links:

2022 Popular AI TV Shows

Andor
Hello Tomorrow
Iron Heart
Picard Season 3
Severance
Solos
Star Wars: The Bad Batch
The Peripheral
The Rise of AI
Westworld Season 4

2022 Popular AI Films

After Yang
AI love you
Avatar the way of water
Big Bug
Black Box
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Blank
Coded Bias
I AM MOTHER
Jung_E
M3GAN
Moonfall
The Artifice Girl
The Tomorrow War

In this episode Chris talks with Maureen Webb about her latest book, Coding Democracy: How Hackers Are Disrupting Power, Surveillance and Authoritarianism (MIT Press, 2000). Webb explores the hacker ethic, Julian Assange & the cypherpunk movement, and the future of democracy.

Links

Coding Democracy: How Hackers Are Disrupting Power

Medlir talks with Dr. Sylvie Borau, an associate professor at TBS Education, Toulouse, France, where she teaches ethical marketing and consumer behavior. They discuss gender imbalance in AI and the issue of 'Benevolent Sexism.' Together they also consider the implications of one of Dr. Boreau's recent studies which concludes that female bots are endowed with more positive human qualities than male bots, and they are perceived as more human than male bots when compared to both animals and machines.

The most human bot: Female gendering increases humanness perceptions of bots and acceptance of AI
I'd blush if I could
Men Are Creating AI Girlfriends and Then Verbally Abusing Them
On the Origins of “The March of Progress”
I Was a Human Siri
Siri owns 46% of the mobile voice assistant market

Medlir talks with his guest, Ryan Washington, a former Marine working with Special Intelligence. They discuss the threat of extremist violence as an important security threat and, perhaps more importantly, a societal threat -- especially as both governments and perpetrators of violence look to co-opt AI into their arsenal.

Links:

https://www.csis.org/analysis/pushed-extremes-domestic-terrorism-amid-polarization-and-protest
http://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/National-Strategy-for-Countering-Domestic-Terrorism.pdf

Chris talks with Ngor Luong and Channing Lee of the Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) at Georgetown University about their recently published report Chinese AI Investment and Commercial Activity in Southeast Asia.

Link:

https://cset.georgetown.edu/publication/chinese-ai-investment-and-commercial-activity-in-southeast-asia

In this episode Chris discusses AI assisted grading and the future of assessments in higher education with the CEO of Graide, Manjinder Kainth. Starting with a discussion of ChatGPT our guest presents new developments and tools for AI assisted grading and also shares some advice for those seeking to embark on their own start-up journeys.

Links:

https://www.graide.co.uk/
https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/2022/artificial-intelligence-offers-solution-to-heavy-marking-loads

In this episode Chris discusses developments in biometric surveillance with Bojan Perkov of the SHARE Foundation who returns to OnAiR to discuss a proposed law on internal affairs in Serbia that would have provided a legal framework for mass biometric surveillance in public spaces.

Show Notes:

https://www.sharefoundation.info/en/round-two-of-the-battle-against-mass-biometric-surveillance/
https://www.sharefoundation.info/en/new-policing-draft-laws/
https://www.sharefoundation.info/en/biometrics-again-in-the-draft-law-on-internal-affairs/

Young Diogenes, Chris, and Medlir share some musings on the future of Human and AI collaboration. In light of some of the challenges faced by academia (since the launch of ChatGPT), we discuss what an early integration of AI and word processing might look like. Medlir chastises tech companies for launching products without sufficient vetting.

Medlir is joined by Eric Stoddart from the St. Andrews School of Divinity for a conversation about belief, Practical Theology, AI, surveillance, and the Common Good.

Links:

https://ericstoddart.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/2021/01/03/new-book/
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/religions/special_issues/new_technologies
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/07/29/the-religious-divide-on-views-of-technologies-that-would-enhance-human-beings/

Chris and Medlir catch up with Young Diogenes to discuss OpenAI's ChatGPT and explore its possible uses and abuses. Don't miss a passing glance at David Bowie's 'Verbasizer' and Meta's AI Cicero.

Links:

https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt/
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2022/12/chatgpt-ai-writing-college-student-essays/672371/
https://slate.com/technology/2022/12/chatgpt-college-essay-plagiarism.html
https://www.vice.com/en/article/xygxpn/the-verbasizer-was-david-bowies-1995-lyric-writing-mac-app
https://aisupremacy.substack.com/p/is-metas-ai-cicero-dangerous?r=lnpt&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post

Medlir and Chris are joined by Ingvild Bode for a wide ranging conversation on military automation, accountability and the future (and present) of armed conflict.

Links:

AutoNorms Weaponised Artificial Intelligence, Norms, and Order
Worried about the autonomous weapons of the future? Look at what’s already gone wrong
AI has already been weaponised – and it shows why we should ban 'killer robots'

Medlir is joined by Carrie McDougall of the Melbourne Law School and an expert in international criminal law. They discuss prospects for a possible international tribunal to prosecute the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, and to consider the question of accountability and Autonomous Weapons Systems.

Links:

Autonomous Weapon Systems and Accountability: Putting the Cart before the Horse
The Case for Creating an International Tribunal to Prosecute the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine by by Oona A. Hathaway
Forging a Cooperative Relationship Between Int’l Crim. Court and a Special Tribunal for Aggression Against Ukraine by Ambassador David Scheffer

In this episode, Medlir and Chris discuss the question of AI sentience and Lambda with Young Diogenes.

Links:

https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2022/03/25/what-is-a-transformer-model/
https://cajundiscordian.medium.com/what-is-lamda-and-what-does-it-want-688632134489
https://cajundiscordian.medium.com/is-lamda-sentient-an-interview-ea64d916d917
https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=iBXyKJwqh20&ab_channel=2ago1992
https://www.wired.com/story/lamda-sentient-ai-bias-google-blake-lemoine/
https://futurism.com/chatbot-abuse
https://www.inputmag.com/features/chatbots-and-the-loneliness-epidemic-when-ai-harmony-realdoll-replika-is-more-than-just-a-friend
https://metro.co.uk/2020/12/11/how-virtual-love-with-chatbots-is-filling-the-romance-void-for-lonely-singles-13735456/
https://news.sky.com/story/i-fell-in-love-with-my-ai-girlfriend-and-it-saved-my-marriage-12548082
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/mar.21480

Chris and Medlir welcome Zayi Yang of MIT Technology Review to the show for a wide ranging discussion from Pokemon to predictive policing and digital authoritarianism to China’s urban Metascapes.

Links:

https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/06/22/1054586/hikvision-worlds-biggest-surveillance-company/
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/25/technology/china-surveillance-police.html?referringSource=articleShare
https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Trade-war/U.S.-China-tensions-knock-96-off-of-bilateral-tech-investment

Chris and Medlir are joined Dr. Jelena Cupac, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Global Governance Research Unit at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center in Germany, to discuss her work on patriarchy, democracy, and AI ethics.

Links:

Engines of Patriarchy: Ethical Artificial Intelligence in Times of Illiberal Backlash Politics
Backlash advocacy and NGO polarization over women's rights in the United Nations

Chris discusses with Asser Institute's Taylor Woodcock the implications of the development and use of military applications of AI for the international legal obligations applicable in armed conflict under international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

Links:

Aspects of Realizing (Meaningful) Human Control: A Legal Perspective | https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4109202
Lethal autonomous weapons, war crimes, and the Convention on Conventional Weapons | https://www.humanrightshere.com/post/doctoral
Lethal autonomous weapons, war crimes, and the Convention on Conventional Weapons | https://theglobal.blog/2019/05/28/lethal-autonomous-weapons-war-crimes-and-the-convention-on-conventional-weapons/

In this episode Medlir and Chris have a chat with Young Diogenes about the use of AI in the latest Top Gun movie, and then explore the boundaries, risks, and opportunities of human-AI collaboration going forward, in a wide ranging discussion that also looks at the question of ‘tamagotchi’ children.

Links:

Hear Val Kilmer's AI voice – Sonantic
Val Kilmer’s daughter says watching dad film ‘Maverick’ was ‘extraordinary’
IMDB
Val Kilmer's Dialogue in "Top Gun: Maverick" Was Read By AI Because He Can't Speak Anymore

In this episode Medlir and Chris speak with the two of the authors of a Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) Georgetown report on AI cooperation among members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, more commonly known as the Quad.

Links

Quad AI | Assessing AI-related Collaboration between the United States, Australia, India, and Japan
The Future of the Quad’s Technology Cooperation Hangs in the Balance

Medlir and Chris discuss the distinction between analogue and digital approaches to IR and the impact of digital innovations in peace-building. They also ask whether digital peace is any more secure and less fragile than the analog one. Meanwhile Young Diogenes engages with Derek Parfit's 'hinge of history' argument and, unsurprisingly, finds extant interpretations lacking.

Links:

The Oxford Handbook of Peacebuilding, Statebuilding, and Peace Formation
Peace-making: new technologies are no panacea
Can history be used to predict the future? Some experts say it can

**Medlir and Chris discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the future of global trade, data colonialism and prospects for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework with guest Dan Ciuriak, while Young Diogenes talks up AI’s potential to transform manufacturing ("Yes, yes, I understand 'Manufacturing' won't seem all that exciting to some of you. Ha. " --YD)

Links:**

Unfree Flow with No Trust | https://www.cigionline.org/articles/unfree-flow-with-no-trust-the-implications-of-geoeconomics-and-geopolitics-for-data-and-digital-trade/
Into the Post-Pandemic | https://www.cigionline.org/articles/into-the-post-pandemic-on-the-new-world-orders-and-their-would-be-architects/

Chris and Medlir explore with Young Diogenes the question of whether AI will be our artist of the future, while Medlir talks to Ilan Manor about public digital diplomacy and the use of digital tools in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Links:

AI-art isn’t art
Communicating with Purpose and Value: Chapter 3 Digital Diplomacy
How Digital Diplomacy is Shaping the #Ukraine Crisis
Digital Diplomacy in #Ukraine- A Case of Strategic Transparency
Why digital sanctions are the latest geopolitical battleground

Chris and Medlir review AI-themed television shows with Young Diogenes (e.g. Westworld), followed by a discussion with Frederick Bruneault, professor of philosophy at University of Quebec Montreal, asking the question: How do we define AI ethics and how do we avoid pitfalls in the debate surrounding it. Finally, we ask Dr. Bruneault, what is missing from the current discussion on AI ethics?

Links:

Groupe de recherche sur l’information et la surveillance au quotidien
AI ethics debate: How can information ethics provide a framework which allows us to avoid usual conceptual pitfalls?» (coll. A.S. Laflamme), AI & Society, 36, 2021, 757-766
AI Ethics Training in Higher Education: Competency Framework» (coll. A.S. Laflamme & A. Mondoux), SocArXiv, March 2022
The role of corporations in addressing AI’s ethical dilemmas, Darrell M. West Thursday, September 13, 2018
Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, and Human Rights: Risks and Opportunities
Pamela Passman

Medlir and Chris start off our third season with AI4Peace's Branka Panic, about how AI can contribute to peace and conflict prevention. Plus see our bonus episode this week on YD's AI movie picks, which also led to a lively second discussion.

Links:

AI4Peace | https://www.aiforpeace.org/
Report on data for peacebuilding and prevention | https://cic.nyu.edu/sites/default/files/can_emerging_technologies_lead_a_revival_of_conflict_early_warningearly_action_lessons_from_the_field-2022_0.pdf
The Berkeley Protocol | https://www.ohchr.org/en/stories/2020/12/berkeley-protocol-gives-guidance-using-public-digital-info-fight-human-rights
The Costs of Connection | https://colonizedbydata.com/
Conflict Forecast | https://conflictforecast.org/
Hala Systems | https://halasystems.com/

Young Diogenes, Medlir, and Chris have a 'lively' chat about YD's settings for this season, some of YD's all-time favorite AI movies, honorable mentions, and briefly, 1 movie that...YD's neural network just couldn't handle when it came out.

How do we teach emerging tech in IR? How will technological changes impact the discipline in particular and higher education more broadly? How can we best design curriculums to address emerging challenges? These are some of the questions Medlir and Chris will explore in the second part of our two part series on higher education with guests Andre Barrinha and Raluca Csernatori.

What does the education look like in an age of everincreasing demands for technical proficiency and availability? How can we make better uses of emerging tech in our classrooms and study spaces? Tech IQ versus Emotional IQ. What is the balance? Professor Nancy Gleason and Dr. Alexandra Mihai joined Chris and Medlir to discuss these questions and more in the first of a two-episode special on Higher Education and Teaching in the age of AI. (YD is on hiatus this week.)

Links:

https://educationalist.substack.com
https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2F978-981-13-0194-0.pdf

**Medlir and Chris talk to Bojan Perkov of the SHARE Foundation about digital surveillance in Serbia. Meanwhile, YD discusses why mass surveillance and facial recognition technologies are far from benign.

Notes**

https://medium.com/s/story/facial-recognition-is-the-perfect-tool-for-oppression-bc2a08f0fe66
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/12/opinion/facebook-privacy.html
https://www.sharefoundation.info/en/

Medlir and Chris talk to Marwa Fatafta, a Palestian digital rights activist, about her work as a digital activist in Palestine and how digital technologies are harnessed against civil society. Young Diogenes also explains the nuts-and-bolts of spyware.

https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/statement-report/statement-targeting-palestinian-hrds-pegasus
https://www.accessnow.org/women-human-rights-defenders-pegasus-attacks-bahrain-jordan/
https://www.nsogroup.com/
https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/01/26/interview-phone-hrw-director-attacked-using-pegasus-spyware

Medlir and Chris have a discussion with Dr. Daphné Richemond-Barak of IDC Herzliya-Israel, about: the evolving role of tunnels in warfare, the importance of international humanitarian law, the Abraham Accords, and whether AI-enabled defense systems like Israel's Iron Dome should be emulated or regulated alongside other Autonomous Weapons Systems. Meanwhile, Young Diongenes shares what some of the consequences may be for AIs 'mastering' the human game of hide & seek.

Links:

https://lieber.westpoint.edu/technology-humanity-end-war/
https://www.idc.ac.il/en/_layouts/15/elad.sps.idc.sprint4/pages/handler.aspx?type=publication&publicationId=4679&userName=barak.daphne
https://cset.georgetown.edu/newsletter/september-23-2021
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/the-idf-and-the-ai-game-changer-674636
https://www.inss.org.il/publication/artificial-intelligence-and-national-security-in-israel
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2021/11/israel-joins-international-artificial-intelligence-group
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/The-first-AI-conflict-Israel-s-Gaza-operation-gives-glimpse-of-future

Description: Medlir and Chris discuss with Gloria Shkurti Özdemir of Turkey-based think-tank SETA, Turkey's ambitious plans for the development and export of AI-enabled military hardware in light of the country's recently announced 5 year strategy. Ismail al-Jaazari, a 12th century Muslim scholar, inventor, artist, and mathematician credited with being the father of robotics, and Ada Lovelace, a gifted 19th century mathematician and the world's 'first computer programmer', make a joint appearance in our segment with Young Diogenes.

https://cbddo.gov.tr/SharedFolderServer/Genel/File/TR-NationalAIStrategy2021-2025.pdf
https://politicstoday.org/turkeys-uav-breakthrough-creates-another-path-to-mena/
https://www.dailysabah.com/business/tech/turkey-rolls-out-strategic-artificial-intelligence-road-map
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/history-magazine/article/ismail-al-jazari-muslim-inventor-called-father-robotics
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/ada-lovelace-the-first-tech-visionary

Medlir, Chris, and YD discuss some of the major developments in AI for IR during the past year (and other delightful tangents).

https://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/2021/06/south-korea-add-robots-rails-and-ai-surveillance-dmz-border/174734/
https://www.the-good-ai.com/
https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/02/24/1014369/10-breakthrough-technologies-2021/
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/ai-will-have-a-bigger-impact-than-fire-says-google-boss-sundar-pichai-rk8bdst7r
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/29/americas/xenobots-self-replicating-robots-scn/index.html
https://www.popsci.com/science/xenobots-synthetic-life-form-reproduce/
https://www.wipo.int/about-wipo/en/offices/china/news/2021/news_0037.html
https://www.unicef.org/globalinsight/policy-guidance-ai-children-pilot-testing-and-case-studies#
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1IcaBn3ej0
https://bdtechtalks.com/2019/09/23/openai-hide-and-seek-reinforcement-learning/
https://prolearn.mit.edu/ai-automation-enterprise
https://www.bnymellon.com/us/en/insights/all-insights/artificial-intelligence-sweeps-hedge-funds.html
https://whisper.ai/
https://t.co/FETD3hDjNQ
https://youtu.be/HrpsLvfmUb0?t=39

Medlir and Chris explore China’s approach to AI governance and innovation with our guest Chen Dingding in a conversation that touches on a number of topics from US-China relations and tech competition to AI governance. While YD ask questions about what the term Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) means, and whether the substrate (biological, silicon, etc.) on which AI runs is likely to affect the ability to truly achieve the AGI that many people imagine.

Links:

https://thediplomat.com/2019/03/chinas-2019-two-sessions-and-the-statement-of-artificial-intelligence-ambitions/
https://thediplomat.com/2021/04/should-the-west-fear-chinas-increasing-role-in-technical-standard-setting/
https://flia.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/A-New-Generation-of-Artificial-Intelligence-Development-Plan-1.pdf
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/11/can-china-and-europe-find-common-ground-on-ai-ethics/#:~:text=Whereas%20the%20Chinese,of%20certain%20people
https://cset.georgetown.edu/publication/harnessed-lightning/
https://www-pre.baai.ac.cn/news/beijing-ai-principles-en.html
https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3111120/surveillance-china-artist-who-hides-security-cameras-beijing
https://medium.com/rs21/the-pursuit-of-artificial-intelligence-and-the-ethical-frameworks-it-demands-40f66abec42a
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/chinese-room/

**Medlir and Chris discuss a wide range of topics with Eugenio V. Garcia. The discussion ranges from: AI militarization and the Global South, efforts to regulate AI by international organizations, to recent developments in AI regulation in Brazil. Meanwhile YD ponders the latest developments in what wearable digital technologies could mean for our digital lives, privacy, and social fragmentation, with a brief look at Facebook/Meta's new "Ray-Ban Stories" smart glasses, and Intel Labs' "Enhancing Photorealism Enhancement”.

Links:**

https://eugeniovargasgarcia.academia.edu
https://theunbrief.substack.com/p/interview-with-deputy-consul-general
https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/09/15/1035785/why-facebook-ray-ban-stories-metaverse/
https://isl-org.github.io/PhotorealismEnhancement/

Medlir and Chris discuss the opportunities and challenges of AI and emerging tech Southeast Asia, tech competition, and regional digital governance with Mark Manantan, while YD and the team ponder what Dune tells us about our future.

Links:

https://thediplomat.com/2020/10/mind-the-gap-how-southeast-asia-can-make-the-ai-leap/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instrumental_convergence

Medlir and Chris discuss innovation, Sino-US tech competition, and AI governance in China with Emily Weinstein. While YD raises the question of whether top down or bottom up incentives are 'better' and the role of government in technology innovation.

Medlir and Chris speak with Leonid Kovachich to discuss Russia’s approach to AI and emerging technology (with YD asking a couple questions about Privacy, Data Governance, and further improving audit trails in the age of AI).

Links:

https://carnegie.ru/2021/04/21/digital-authoritarianism-with-russian-characteristics-pub-84346
https://www.ifri.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/nocetti_russia_artificial_intelligence_2020.pdf
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0030438720300648
https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/08/30/1033941/afghanistan-biometric-databases-us-military-40-data-points
https://www.csoonline.com/article/3318238/the-opm-hack-explained-bad-security-practices-meet-chinas-captain-america.html

Medlir, Chris and YD discuss highlights from our first season.

Medlir and Chris discuss AI and (Counter)Terrorism with our guest Adrian Shtuni. While Young Diogenes shares 3 possible vectors for terrorist use of AI.

Links:

https://warontherocks.com/2019/09/terrorist-groups-artificial-intelligence-and-killer-drones/
http://unicri.it/sites/default/files/2021-06/Malicious%20Use%20of%20AI%20-%20UNCCT-UNICRI%20Report_Web.pdf
https://imctc.org/en/eLibrary/INTReports/Documents/Report-Issu-09-EN.pdf
https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspxNewsID=27230&LangID=E
https://www.un.org/counterterrorism/2nd-HLC-session-30-Jun-2021

Medlir and Chris discuss the future of work with our guest Elena Ardelean, while Young Diogenes reflects on the end of the world.

Articles:

https://ai4da.com/how-does-ai-impact-the-labor-market-and-what-can-we-do-about-it/
https://www.nber.org/papers/w24689
https://workofthefuture.mit.edu/research-post/artificial-intelligence-and-the-future-of-work/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleystahl/2021/03/10/how-ai-will-impact-the-future-of-work-and-life/?sh=1cae26eb79a3
https://www.bcg.com/publications/2021/impact-of-new-technologies-on-jobs
https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/32e54505-3bfb-4198-b939-e1e8847715f1/EMCompass-Note-69-Role-of-AI-in-EMs.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=mNdPiNf

AI and Development:

https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/32e54505-3bfb-4198-b939-e1e8847715f1/EMCompass-Note-69-Role-of-AI-in-EMs.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=mNdPiNf

Vulnerable World Hypothesis (Bostrom)

https://www.nickbostrom.com/papers/vulnerable.pdf
https://www.ted.com/talks/nick_bostrom_how_civilization_could_destroy_itself_and_4_ways_we_could_prevent_it?language=en

Medlir and Chris interview Ray Acheson on patriarchy, defense technologies and AI, and are also joined by three special guests who share their perspectives on AI and IR.

Related Links:

https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Publications/aws-and-patriarchy.pdf
https://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/resources/publications-and-research/publications/14677-why-gender-matters-in-international-cyber-security
https://www.turing.ac.uk/research/publications/report-where-are-women-mapping-gender-job-gap-ai

Medlir and Chris interview Dr. Yuna Wong on wargaming, deterrence, and the future of conflict, while Young Diogenes discusses how AI may change gaming.

https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2797.html
https://www.rand.org/pubs/tools/TL301.html
https://www.rand.org/pubs/authors/w/wong_yuna_huh.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Cnb3_rv2Fk
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/1035/squad-leader
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close_Combat_(series)
https://deepmind.com/blog/article/muzero-mastering-go-chess-shogi-and-atari-without-rules

Medlir and Chris interview Marta Bo on Autonomous Weapons Systems and accountability under international criminal law, while Young Diogenes talks about the trolley dilemma, the moral machine, and that time when Dwight and Michael end up in a lake.

Related Links:

https://www.asser.nl/about-the-institute/asser-today/blog-meaningful-human-control-over-autonomous-weapons-and-international-criminal-law/
https://www.graduateinstitute.ch/communications/news/who-criminally-responsible-commission-war-crimes-when-lethal-autonomous-weapon
Artificial intelligence and algorithms: pros and cons | DW Documentary (AI documentary)

Medlir and Chris interview Ryo Hinata-Yamaguchi on AI and security in East Asia with a focus on Japan, while Young Diogenes discusses how the show's tagline may be perceived in the future, and 'The Midas Touch'.

Related Links:

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Emerging-Technologies-and-the-Future-of-US-Japan-Defense-Collaboration.pdf
https://warontherocks.com/2014/12/top-10-failed-defense-programs-of-the-rma-era/

Medlir and Chris interview Karen Richmond on the risks and opportunities opened up by AI for the practice of international justice, while Young Diogenes discusses algorithmic bias

Related Links:

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3727899
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12027-020-00602-0
https://cjtec.org/files/5f5f93ea20ded
https://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2020/09/artificial-intelligence-poses-serious-risks-in-the-criminal-justice-system

Medlir and Chris interview one of the leading experts on big data ethics in the humanitarian field, Andrej Zwitter, while Young Diogenes discusses deep fakes.

Related Links:

http://hdl.handle.net/11370/067d2e43-89db-4d9c-ba88-65910a8cec71
http://hdl.handle.net/11370/353cc676-c7ae-4e35-bb0f-d80521e5849b
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbloc.2020.00026/full
https://jhumanitarianaction.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41018-020-00072-6
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343219581_Cyberspace_Blockchain_Governance_How_Technology_Implies_Normative_Power_and_Regulation
https://youtu.be/cFuzHc9iGj4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpJbq1wpr8c&feature=youtu.be
https://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2020/09/artificial-intelligence-poses-serious-risks-in-the-criminal-justice-system

Medlir and Chris interview Katharina Hoene on how AI may shape diplomatic practice and international negotiations, while Young Diogenes discusses the benefits of Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3 (GPT-3).

Related Links:

https://www.diplomacy.edu/sites/default/files/AI-diplo-report.pdf
https://www.diplomacy.edu/blog/2021-emergence-digital-foreign-policy

Medlir and Chris interview our guest, Jacob Parakilas, to discuss what you need to know about the US National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence’s report on national security and defense, while Young Diogenes talks about the 2017 arms-control advocacy video Slaughterbots.

Related Links:

https://thediplomat.com/2021/03/is-an-alliance-of-alliances-around-ai-feasible/
https://www.nscai.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Full-Report-Digital-1.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CO6M2HsoIA
https://autonomousweapons.org

Medlir, Chris, and Young Diogenes introduce the podcast by exploring the many ways Artificial Intelligence will shape the future of International Relations.