AI Podcast Interviews Articles and Reports

Episode Summary: Dr. Danko Nikolic, a scientist at the Max-Planck Institute for Brain Research, asks and works to answer questions about how our physical neuronal connections create the mind's perceptions. In the realm of AI, Danko zones in on learning in a newborn human and compares that to a robot. He asks how we can take human lessons, what’s built into our genome, and apply that to construct a more generally intelligent AI, in a way that is not being done today.

Episode Summary: After receiving her PhD in Computer Science from the University of New York in 2002, Dr. Sheryl Brahnam's research interests steered her toward studying human abuse and misuse with computers, specifically conversational agents such as Siri, phone-based auto agent systems, and even chat support. Her research yields questions in relative new territory: Are AI prone to receiving misuse?; why do people misuse these agents in ways that they would not treat a human?; and, what types of regulations will we need as AI improves and becomes more intelligent?

Episode Summary: Dr. Joscha Bach is a software developer and researcher, who is currently developing a cognitive AI framework at  MIT Media Lab and the Harvard Program for Evolutionary Dynamics. In this episode, he speaks about the troubles in projecting when strong AI may be developed, and sheds light on the trends taking us there, including deep and reinforcement learning.

Episode Summary:
Is it possible to make AI friendly to humans via software or will we have to hardwire consideration for humanity into an advanced AI? Louis Del Monte, best-selling author and expert in the field of Artificial Intelligence, argues the latter. In this discussion, Del Monte talks about how he came to these conclusions and wrote a book on the topic, in part inspired by a particular AI study that provoked his grave concern for where AI may take us in the future.

Episode Summary: Dr. András Kornai wants to put emphasis on the real and near-term ethical considerations around AI. In this interview, Kornai peels off the Hollywood myth "layers" around consciousness and AI in order to spotlight the very real, present, and advancing algorithms. He explains how such algorithms, which are slowly taking over the financial, medical, and automotive industries, are increasingly relevant as machines start to govern and make more decisions in our everyday interactions.

Episode Summary: Daniel Berleant is an expert in information science and artificial intelligence, and is the author of the book The Human Race to the Future: What Could Happen  - and What to Do. In this interview, we discuss how robots and automation are already affecting industry, and how these impacts might shape not only the future landscape of our economy, but also our conception of what it means to work and earn a living.

Episode Summary: Katherine Hayles is best known for her work as a postmodern social and literary critic. Now a professor at Duke University, Hayles joins Emerj for a discussion about the difference between consciousness and cognition, from the features that differentiate the two to the types of technologies that facilitate each. Hayles contributes her views on how the technologies of the future may impact human consciousness and the very role of human beings.

Episode Summary: Could we one day upload ourselves into a computer or chip? Dr. Keith Wiley thinks that one day, we might be able to replicate consciousness within another entity. In this episode, he speaks to us about why uploading human identity in a computer substrate might be possible in the coming decades, and the type of progress we’re making today in the areas of computing and mapping the brain.