In what is being called the “third era of computing,” cognitive computing is revolutionizing the relationship between humans and computers. Internet of Things is only the beginning. Artificial Intelligence is finally sprouting out of science fiction and blossoming into palpable technology. Cognitive systems are able to learn independently, build upon pre-programmed knowledge, understand natural language, and interact with human beings with reasoning and logic.
In this session Mark will explore how, through the anthropomorphizing of machines, we are creating an environment of fabricated empathy that will change the human experience, and how we are asking machines to make ethical decisions that they’re grossly unprepared to do. He will also discuss why Artificial Intelligence won’t create an apocalypse of robots who take over the world. Maybe.
Mark's keynote was given at WebVisions Portland on Fri., May 20, 2016.
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Mark has been working as a creative professional and technologist for nearly twenty years, partnering with Fortune 100/500 companies and non-profits to craft meaningful experiences for digital UIs and ecosystems in new technologies. He shares his thoughts as an international speaker and writer.
22. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
Technological Singularity occurs when
machines are capable of recursive self-
improvement and building other machines
more advanced than themselves, yielding an
intelligence surpassing all current human
control or understanding.
I.J. Good, Mathematician/Cryptologist
24. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
…even though these are very useful tools
based on well-known mathematical
methods, we actually understand
surprisingly little of why certain models
work and others don’t.
Alexander Mordvintsev, Google Software Engineer
38. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
These robots will disappoint us if we are
looking for human connection. Do we want
to make them in such a way that we’re
gonna love them? Because they will be
pretending to love us.
Sherry Turkle, Cultural Analyst
40. Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
Built-in intelligence providing
psychological, physiological, and
social effects through physical
interaction with humans
45. Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
Cleaner floors, every day, all at
the push of a button
46. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
Mine, I feel they are different. Each one has
different behavior. My Discovery—he’s more
crazy. He runs into things and sometimes
goes into different places he should not be
going to. And the Scheduler—he’s more
refined. He knows what he’s doing.
Research Participant Discussing His Roombas
47. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
We did a non-warranty exchange and it was
emotional. We had some real reservation
knowing that we are going to send this one
back to the company and we are going to get
a different one back.
Research Participant Discussing Her Roomba
55. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
There’s excitement from the tech press, but
we’re also starting to see some negative
threads about its being terrifying.
Courtney Hohne, Spokesperson for Google X
57. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
A phenomenon whereby a computer-
generated figure or humanoid robot bearing
a near-identical resemblance to a human
being, arouses a sense of unease or
revulsion in the person viewing it.
Masahiro Mori, 1970, “The Uncanny Valley”
68. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
Every few days, Digit checks your spending
habits and removes a few dollars from your
checking account if you can afford it.
Digit Product Description
70. Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
In a mock building fire, test
subjects followed instructions
from an “Emergency Guide
Robot” even after the machine
had proven itself unreliable.
71. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
We wanted to ask the question about
whether people would be willing to trust
these rescue robots. A more important
question now might be to ask how to
prevent them from trusting these robots
too much.
Alan Wagner, Georgia Tech Research Engineer
105. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
The cutting edge of programming isn’t
super-smart programmers writing bots. It’s
super-smart programmers writing bots that
teach themselves how to do things the
programmer could never teach them to do.
C.G.P. Grey
116. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
The civilized man has built a coach, but has
lost the use of his feet. He has got a fine
Geneva watch, but he has lost the skill to
tell the time by the sun.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
118. “
Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
When I in dreams behold thy fairest shade,
whose shade in dreams doth wake the
sleeping morn, the daytime shadow of my
love betray’d, lends hideous night to
dreaming’s faded form.
Poetry App, by MIT PhD Student J. Nathan Matias
128. Mark Wyner, Webvisions Portland, 2016
Credits
• Wooden robot image: Karolina Grabowska
• Cognitive patents infographic: IBM
• Empathy image: adapted from Buffer
• Android Dick video capture: PBS
• Telanoid R1 humanoid photo: Osaka University
• Emergency Guide Robot image: Georgia Tech Research Institute
• Nao video capture: Human Robot Interaction Laboratory, Tufts University
• Robot cook image: Michael Bahlo
• Tesla pedestrian detection image: Jalopnik
• Robot ethics experiment image: Alan Winfield
• Ethics brain image: Psychlite
• Robot communication video: The Hunt for AI, BBC
• Robot icon: Creative Stall
• Human-emulation illustration: Emulate, Inc.
• Mind gaps illustration: Ashley Mackenzie
• Robot factory worker: Reuters/Issei Kato
• A.I. illustration: Jason Salavon’s computer
• All other images are stock, media resources, screenshots, or licensed under Creative Commons