A recent hackathon and symposium co-sponsored by SRI and U of T's Data Sciences Institute explored new ways of using large language models responsibly, with students and faculty receiving training on how to design efficient, interdisciplinary solutions to promote responsible AI usage.

Despite the growing use of ChatGPT, we lack a method to evaluate its performance and potential risks. SRI Associate Director Lisa Austin, Faculty Fellow Shion Guha, and Faculty Affiliates Anastasia Kuzminykh and Shurui Zhou are setting out to study and analyze the impact of generative AI on a wide range of communities. Learn more about "Toward a Fair and Inclusive Future of Work with ChatGPT."

The SRI Seminar Series returns for fall 2024 with leading experts across various fields, including computer science, communications, law, healthcare, and philosophy. Seminars will explore new questions at the intersection of technology and society through critical issues such as trust, inequality, public policy, and the ethical implications of AI systems.

The field of AI safety emphasizes that systems be aligned with human values, often stating AI should “do no harm.” But lethal autonomous systems used for firearms and drones are already harming people. How can we address the reality of purposely harmful AI systems? SRI Graduate Fellow Michael Zhang writes about a panel of experts exploring this topic.

How can we help people recognize AI-generated images? Can we prevent copyrighted materials from being used in training data? What’s going on in the new field of forensic analysis of ML systems? These and related topics were at the centre of the 2024 Secure and Trustworthy Machine Learning (SaTML) conference in Toronto. Read the highlights.

At SRI’s annual academic conference, leading researchers from diverse fields came together to tackle the complexities of AI alignment and how to better understand the social impacts of data-driven technologies. 28 distinguished speakers presented new approaches and ideas to better understand how these technologies are impacting our world.

Acclaimed science fiction author Ted Chiang reflects on these and related questions: What is the relationship between technology and human cognition? How have writing and language been deployed as technologies throughout human history? And what does the future of computers hold—will it give rise to a new kind of cognitive technology?

The Schwartz Reisman Institute’s annual academic conference will take place May 6–8, 2024, with select sessions taking place in the newly-completed Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus located in the heart of Toronto’s Discovery District. Speakers include: Peter Railton, Harper Reed, Huili Chen, Ray Perrault, Gillian Hadfield, and more.

Can algorithmic decision-making help clear backlogs in the courts, and is this a justified use of the technology? Do automated systems make “better” decisions than human judges, and what do we mean by “better”? Should legal professionals be involved in the design of automated systems, and if so, how? Nathalie Smuha and Abdi Aidid discuss these and related questions.

Undergraduate students at the University of Toronto reflect on what they learned from attending a book launch event on data and human rights—and how they see the future unfolding in the digital age.

The SRI Seminar Series returns for 2024 with 12 exciting presentations exploring how data-driven technologies are changing our world, including talks on economics, law, political science, privacy, behavioural science, linguistics, and the ethics of AI. Registration for all sessions is now open.

U of T University Professor emeritus and “godfather of AI” Geoffrey Hinton delivered a lecture at Convocation Hall discussing whether large language models understand what they are doing and the existential risks posed by unfettered development of the technology he helped create.