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APRIL NEWSLETTER  

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Shaping the AI Systems of the Future

As the achievements and missteps of generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems have dominated headlines in recent weeks, everyone is wondering: what future role will AI play in education, the workforce, and society in general?

Illustration of blue and green buildings resembling data servers, with a multicolor texture demonstrating the prevalence of data.

The status quo provides a cautionary tale about where things may go without careful guidance: beyond generative AI tools, AI currently powers automated systems that are increasingly shaping decisions across sectors, including education ([link removed]), housing ([link removed]), employment ([link removed]), and government services ([link removed]), determining access to economic opportunities, civil liberties, and civil rights. Very real harms emerge when systems are irresponsibly designed and deployed, so to take full advantage of AI’s potential, we need a cross-society effort to put in place clear guardrails and norms governing its use.

Governments are working to put these guardrails in place: in the U.S., various federal government agencies are taking action in the spirit of the Biden Administration’s AI Bill of Rights ([link removed]), which sets out principles to guide the design, use, and deployment of automated systems. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has, for instance, committed to fighting discriminatory technology practices, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has taken promising first steps ([link removed]) towards addressing harmful online data practices. 

This week, the EEOC, FTC, Department of Justice and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a joint statement ([link removed]) underscoring their commitment to focus on AI uses and enforce existing law. CDT welcomed this announcement ([link removed]), while noting the need for further action. As CDT President and CEO Alexandra Reeve Givens told Fast Company ([link removed]), “This is where Congress need[s] to act, by mandating notice when someone is the subject of an AI-driven decision, and then coming up with meaningful standards for high-risk systems to be audited….. We have to make sure they’re going through that responsible AI process before putting tools on the market.”

States are taking action as well: in implementing the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), the California Privacy Protection Agency is looking at how to best provide consumers with more information ([link removed]) about how automated decision-making affects them, and the ability to opt out. Specific bills governing AI are under consideration in California and Connecticut.

Meanwhile, lawmakers in the European Union are close to finalizing the Artificial Intelligence Act, which aims to limit the harms caused by AI, sets out criteria for determining what level of risk an AI system poses, and bans certain high-risk uses. CDT’s Brussels office is engaging closely on the file, coordinating different civil society organizations and urging lawmakers to ensure the law provides meaningful access to remedy.

As these efforts unfold, CDT has pushed governments to protect individual privacy, respect civil rights, foster inclusive participatory systems, promote transparent and accountable oversight, and advance just social structures, to help ensure that the AI systems of the future are grounded in commitment to trust, fairness, and democratic values.  

Photograph of Katherine Maher, smiling woman with short blonde hair against a green background.

In Case You Missed It

— This month, CDT was delighted to welcome Katherine Maher to our Board of Directors ([link removed]). Maher is the former CEO and Executive Director of the Wikimedia Foundation, which owns and operates Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects. She is a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council and an appointed member of the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Affairs Policy Board, where she advises the Secretary of State on the intersection of technology, democracy, and human rights.

— CDT joined several other free speech and privacy organizations in calling for Congress to refrain from banning TikTok ([link removed]), and to instead enact comprehensive privacy legislation to address many of the concerns that have motivated calls for a ban. The letter cautions that a TikTok ban would infringe on Americans’ First Amendment rights and set a precedent that authoritarian regimes around the world would cite when banning communications tools in efforts to stifle dissent and debate. We argued that other actions by Congress, more closely tailored to the national security concerns some government officials have raised, should be pursued instead.

Logo for the Summit for Democracy 2023. Blue text on a white background.

— CDT joined over 100 other civil society organizations in endorsing the Civil Society Declaration of Democratic Principles ([link removed]), which came out of the 2023 Summit For Democracy, and calling on states to take the recommended actions associated with each principle. The 14 broad democratic principles for states include protecting and cultivating fundamental freedoms and civic space, supporting media freedom and resistance to disinformation, and upholding fundamental human rights on digital platforms.

— In a blog post, CDT’s Gabriel Nicholas explains why Twitter’s release of its algorithm is not the transparency holy grail ([link removed]) some hoped it would be, and what information it does and doesn’t share.

Photograph of Michal Luria; woman wearing glasses and a dark shirt with a plant and window in the background.

CDT in the Press

— CDT Research Fellow Michal Luria wrote for Wired ([link removed]) about how AI agents like ChatGPTs blur social roles.

— CDT’s Emma Llansó told Gizmodo ([link removed]) about Montana’s efforts to ban TikTok, “Banning an entire communication service is basically the opposite of what you would call a narrowly tailored effort to restrict illegal activity.”

— CDT’s Elizabeth Laird joined Philadelphia’s WHYY ([link removed]) for a conversation about efforts in the region to monitor students’ online activity.

CDT "in Person"

— Thank you to everyone who joined us at CDT’s inaugural Spring Fling ([link removed])! We were pleased to welcome almost 500 guests from across civil society, industry, government, and academia at an event designed to coincide with IAPP’s Global Privacy Summit. Thank you for being part of our fun night, kicking off the warmer weather in style!

— Alexandra Reeve Givens, CDT’s President & CEO, spoke with European Vice President Margrethe Vestager and Director of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy Dr. Arati Prabhakar during the Summit for Democracy for a discussion on “Shaping Emerging Technologies to Ensure Respect for Human Rights and Democratic Principles ([link removed])”.

CDT's Alexandra Givens interviews Trevor Noah on stage at the IAPP's Global Privacy Summit.

— Alexandra Givens led a fireside chat with Trevor Noah during the opening keynote for IAPP’s Global Privacy Summit. The pair discussed Noah’s childhood in the surveillance state of apartheid South Africa, policing and tech in the U.S., and the role tech companies must play in ensuring their products protect people’s rights.

— In the latest episode of CDT's podcast ([link removed]), hear the recent SXSW panel featuring CDT’s Alexandra Givens; Cecile Richards, former President of Planned Parenthood; and Nabiha Syed, President of The Markup, on the ways advocates are working to protect users’ privacy and access to information following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Photograph of O'Donavan Johnson; man in glasses wearing a tan blazer and a white collared shirt.

Staff SpotlightO’Donavan Johnson ([link removed]), Director of Development & External AffairsHow long have you been working in digital rights? I'm a newbie to working in digital rights, but I have been following the space for over a decade. In 2011, I attended a conference on using data for good (now Data on Purpose at Stanford University) that exposed me to the use of algorithms in prison sentencing, to including marginalized communities as participants in data analysis (not simply as subjects of analysis), and much more. Fast forward to 2017-2021: while a fundraiser at Princeton University, I secured support for the Center for Information Technology Policy and for humanities students to contribute ethical frameworks and scrutiny as paid interns at tech companies. These experiences paved my way to CDT, but the path since starting here has unfolded as an amazing challenge intellectually and professionally. My favorite part of CDT is definitely the people—just a genuine group of talented, caring, humble advocates.

What's the best book you've read recently? The book I completed most recently was Work Rules (about Google's early workplace culture), which my team and I read to kick off our new, exciting book club.

What is the most recent cultural activity you've been to? I haven't been to any in-person events since CDT’s Tech Prom (had to miss our Spring Fling event due to illness), but I looked up tickets to see a live concert by Harry Mack (freestyle rapper); we'll see.

Dogs or cats? Whenever I'm asked, "cats or dogs," my answer is always the same: yes.

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