The World Today: Worst Case Scenarios: Artificial Intelligence

If things go right, artificial intelligence (AI) promises to inaugurate a new era of human progress and productivity, solve complex problems, and make our lives easier, smarter, and more efficient. But what if things go wrong? A small group of scholars and activists are increasingly concerned about the potential for superhuman AI, or “superintelligence.” Others point to the brittleness and biases of current machine learning approaches and warn of the dangers of over-hyped AI being misapplied. What are the real worst-case scenarios for artificial intelligence, and how can smart global policy avoid them? 

In this edition of the World Today: Worst Case Scenarios, join Mary “Missy” Cummings, professor in the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University, and Paul Scharre, Senior Fellow and Director of the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, for answers to these questions and an in-depth debate about artificial intelligence and its global effects. 

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SPEAKERS

Professor Mary (Missy) Cummings received her B.S. in Mathematics from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1988, her M.S. in Space Systems Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in 1994, and her Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia in 2004. A naval officer and military pilot from 1988-1999, she was one of the U.S. Navy’s first female fighter pilots. She is currently a Professor in the Duke University Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, and the Director of the Humans and Autonomy Laboratory. She is an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Fellow, and a member of the Defense Innovation Board. Her research interests include human supervisory control, explainable artificial intelligence, human-autonomous system collaboration, human-robot interaction, human-systems engineering, and the ethical and social impact of technology. 

Paul Scharre is a Senior Fellow and Director of the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. He is the award-winning author of Army of None: Autonomous Weapons and the Future of War, which won the 2019 Colby Award and was named one of Bill Gates’ top five books of 2018. Scharre previously worked in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) where he played a leading role in establishing policies on unmanned and autonomous systems and emerging weapons technologies. He also led DoD efforts to establish policies on intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) programs and directed energy technologies. His most recent position was Special Assistant to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. Prior to joining OSD, Scharre served as a special operations reconnaissance team leader in the Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion and completed multiple tours to Iraq and Afghanistan. Scharre holds a Ph.D. in War Studies from King’s College London and an M.A. in Political Economy and Public Policy and a B.S. in Physics, cum laude, from Washington University in St. Louis.