idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Invitation for journalists: From the extinction of mankind to stochastic parrots - visions of the future and fantasies of omnipotence abound in the debate concerning the significance of artificial intelligence. The international, interdisciplinary transatlantic symposium titled “Critical Stances towards AI: For a Critical and Self-Determined Approach to Digital Technology" to be held on 28 and 29 September 2023 in New York City seeks to achieve classification and objectivity.
The starting point for this discussion as well as reactions to the latest developments in artificial intelligence in the USA and the European Union appear to be contradictory: While U.S. tech giants are expected to exploit their innovative edge, the EU passed the AI Act as a first attempt to introduce comprehensive regulation of artificial intelligence. The debate is further complicated by the increasing interference of the interests of global tech companies. One thing, however, is certain: Developments in the field of artificial intelligence are highly dynamic, and many of their effects cannot yet be foreseen.
But how can we make the debate more objective and safeguard the values of a humanistic society? How can we manage the dangers and risks of AI while at the same time exploiting its opportunities and potentials? These questions bring to mind the critical thinking of Joseph Weizenbaum, who would have turned 100 this year.
Researchers from Europe and North America attending the international and interdisciplinary symposium "Critical Stances towards AI: For a Critical and Self-Determined Approach to Digital Technology” will discuss and argue these questions in the tradition of Weizenbaum’s thinking.
Journalists are warmly invited to attend the symposium.
When: 28 until 29 September 2023, from 12.00
Where: Deutsches Haus at New York University (NYU), 42 Washington Mews, New York City, NY 10003
Registration
Journalists wishing to attend are requested to register by email by 27 September 2023 at: alumni@tu-berlin.de. We are also very happy to arrange interviews with researchers.
Background – 100 years of Joseph Weizenbaum
The German-American computer science pioneer Joseph Weizenbaum would have turned 100 on 8 January 2023. Born in 1923 in Berlin, he fled Nazi Germany for the USA in 1935, where he conducted research and teaching for a number of decades as a pioneer of computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Following the reaction to his development of the first chatbot “ELIZA”, he became an outspoken critic of computer science while also adopting a stance on many socio-political issues. To mark the 100th anniversary of his birth, the Weizenbaum Institute, Technische Universität Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin and the Deutsches Haus at NYU are holding an international and interdisciplinary symposium titled "Critical Stances towards AI: For a Critical and Self-Determined Approach to Digital Technology". The symposium is designed for alumni of all universities and non-university research institutions involved in the Weizenbaum Institute for the Networked Society. The event is supported by the German Centre for Research and Innovation (DWIH) New York.
Over a period of two days, researchers from the Weizenbaum Institute will discuss current topics and issues in a number of different sessions with fellow researchers from North America. The focus is on questions relating to human responsibility and the development of artificial intelligence, especially with regard to disinformation, as well as the regulation of platforms, algorithms and global tech companies - questions that Joseph Weizenbaum had already addressed intensively and that could hardly be more relevant today. The event serves to promote transatlantic dialog on these topics, as well as knowledge about Joseph Weizenbaum and his work.
View the complete program https://www.tu.berlin/en/go216460/
The Weizenbaum Institute
The Weizenbaum Institute conducts research on ethical, legal, economic and social aspects of the Internet and digitization. Since September 2017, it has been supported as a collaborative project by a research consortium from Berlin and Brandenburg whose members include Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin University of the Arts, Technische Universität Berlin, Potsdam university, the Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems (FOKUS) and the Berlin Social Science Center. The Weizenbaum Institute is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the State of Berlin. To mark the W/100 anniversary, the Weizenbaum Institute is addressing the work and influence of the man after whom it is named. The symposium is one of the events celebrating this anniversary. You can find out more at: http://www.weizenbaum-institut.de
Further information is available from:
Juliane Wilhelm and Bettina Klotz
TU Berlin
Office of Communication, Events, and Alumni
Alumni Program
Phone: 0049 30 314-24028 /-27650
Email: juliane.wilhelm@tu-berlin.de; bettina.klotz@tu-berlin.de
Press contact at the Weizenbaum Institute
Dr. Mikiya Heise
Head of Communication
Tel.: 0049 (0)30 700 141 010
Cell: 0049 (0)160 998 268 11
Email: mikiya.heise@weizenbaum-institut.de
Criteria of this press release:
Journalists
Information technology
transregional, national
Miscellaneous scientific news/publications
English
You can combine search terms with and, or and/or not, e.g. Philo not logy.
You can use brackets to separate combinations from each other, e.g. (Philo not logy) or (Psycho and logy).
Coherent groups of words will be located as complete phrases if you put them into quotation marks, e.g. “Federal Republic of Germany”.
You can also use the advanced search without entering search terms. It will then follow the criteria you have selected (e.g. country or subject area).
If you have not selected any criteria in a given category, the entire category will be searched (e.g. all subject areas or all countries).
