SHIFT

We explore what impact the U.S. President's executive order on artificial intelligence might have as governments across the globe move to regulate AI. We Meet: Khari Johnson, senior writer, Wired Suresh Venkatasubramanian, director of the Center for Technological Responsibility, Reimagination, and Redesign with the Data Science Institute at Brown University Credits: SHIFT is produced by Jennifer Strong, Anthony Green and Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

The hardest part of making something in space right now might just be getting it back to Earth. A conversation with Quartz’s Tim Fernholz about the opportunities and challenges of making goods in orbit.

In the first installment of our oral history project we meet the woman overseeing Airbnb's efforts to build an anti-party AI system to try to combat fraud and stop bad actors from using the company’s platform. We Meet: Naba Banerjee, head of trust and safety at Airbnb Credits: SHIFT is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green, with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

Stanford University measured the transparency of top AI foundation models–all failed. The researchers are urging companies to reveal more information such as the data and human labor used to train these models. We Meet: Karen Hao, contributing writer at The Atlantic Credits: SHIFT is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green, with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

We take you to the heart of New York City’s manufacturing center, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, for a conversation about AI ethics and geopolitics. It’s taped in front of a live audience of students and manufacturing experts at a factory owned by Nanotronics - a company that manufactures hardware and software capable of working on a nanometer scale - during Manufacturing Week. We Meet: John Paul Farmer, Chief Innovation Officer & President, WeLink Cities Anwaar AlMahmeed, Strategic Advisor, Republic MENA Geoffrey Levene, Director Worldwide AI Initiatives and Global Public Sector, Head of Climate Action, Defense and Space, NVIDIA Credits: The show is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green with help from Emma Cillekens. The theme music was composed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

We hop into the backseat of a police car and learn how officers in Rwanda have adopted and deployed AI on the streets of its capital city, Kigali. We Meet: Chief Inspector of Police Paul Ryamugwiza, director of traffic and road enforcement systems for Rwanda National Police Credits: The show is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

Advances in off the shelf commercial technologies have helped manufacturers build complex war machines at much lower prices. It’s changed how drone combat works and who can wage it. This episode, we examine the implications on international security and everyday life. We Meet: Abishur Prakash, Founder & CEO of The Geopolitical Business Lorenz Meier, Founder & CEO of Auterion Credits: The show is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

Tech companies and investors openly discuss the shifting role of soil in climate-proofing the world’s complex food systems in this live episode taped in front of an audience at New York Climate Week. We Meet: Shely Aronov, CEO of Innerplant Avantika Daing, Managing Partner, Plum Alley and General Partner, Plum Alley Venture Fund Ana Pavlovic, Chief Commercial Officer at Eion Carbon Sara Eckhouse, Executive Director of FoodShot Global Credits: This show is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from him and Jacob Gorski.

It’s been six months since an open letter signed by many of the biggest names in AI called for a temporary pause on the development of certain types of the tech. This episode, we speak with AI luminary Gary Marcus about what's changed since the letter was published, what hasn’t, and how he’s thinking about the way forward. We Meet: Gary Marcus, scientist and entrepreneur Credits: SHIFT is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green, with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from Jacob Gorski.

Disney’s science-fiction thriller, The Creator, paints a picture of a future world at war—humans vs. artificial intelligence. This episode we meet the film’s director Gareth Edwards, who unpacks just how complex the relationship is between the two, and why he decided to explore it in this new film. We Meet: Director Gareth Edwards Credits: SHIFT is produced by Jennifer Strong and Anthony Green, with help from Emma Cillekens. It’s mixed by Garret Lang, with original music from Jacob Gorski.

Welcome to SHIFT—a new weekly podcast from PRX and the creators of the In Machines We Trust and Future of Everything. Episodes drop September 27th.