AI for the Rest of Us

About AI for the Rest of Us

A podcast from The University of Texas at Austin that helps explain artificial intelligence—what it means, who it affects and what you need to know right now.

Publisher

Marc Airhart, Casey Boyle

Category

society & culture · technology

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

29 May 2024

Latest episode

7 Nov 2024

Latest episodes

12 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   7 Nov 2024

   Live Show: AI + Energy

   AI experts Dr. Kate Starbird and Dr. Daniel Schwartz discuss how AI can both harm and help the environment by making our energy systems more sustainable, efficient, and safer.

2. 

   10 Oct 2024

   Live with Kara Swisher

   Kara Swisher, the one-of-a-kind tech reporter, podcaster and book author, dropped by The University of Texas at Austin’s Cactus Café for a spirited conversation with a live audience about her concerns over the concentration of power in a few big tech companies, the capacity of tech to be used as both a tool and a weapon, her embrace of self-driving cars and her belief that AI will never replace human creativity.

3. 

   26 Sept 2024

   Is AI Coming for Our News?

   How much of our news is AI-generated right now and how might that change? With more and more misinformation posing as news, how can we sort out fact from fiction? And, in the face of falling revenue, can AI help save the news industry?

4. 

   12 Sept 2024

   Is it Time to Regulate AI?

   Artificial intelligence is very loosely regulated in the U.S. Today we’re talking with a legal expert on the kinds of laws that could help make AI safer and more useful for everyone.

5. 

   29 Aug 2024

   Can We Trust AI to Make Big Decisions?

   Are you okay with a machine deciding if you’ll get hired for your dream job, what kind of tests your doctor orders, whether you look like the person who just robbed a jewelry store, or how much interest you’ll pay for a car loan? Welcome to the world of AI decision making.

6. 

   15 Aug 2024

   The Algorithm Will See You Now

   There are a lot of wild claims about what AI can do to help make us healthier—so how can we figure out what’s real and what’s hype? And are there some potential pitfalls with these new technologies?

7. 

   1 Aug 2024

   How AI is Accelerating Discovery

   Researchers in fields as diverse as astronomy, chemistry, neuroscience, biotechnology and public health are now using AI tools to look for patterns in their data, write code, find and summarize existing scientific literature, and even design experiments. Someday, scientific discoveries might even be made entirely by AI. We sat down with two guests for a bird’s eye view of how AI tools and approaches are boosting scientific discovery. Adam Klivans (https://www.cs.utexas.edu/people/faculty-researchers/adam-klivans) is a professor of computer science and the director of the Machine Learning Lab (https://ml.utexas.edu/) (MLL), which is a kind of umbrella organization for interdisciplinary AI research across the university. He also co-leads the Institute for Foundations of Machine Learning (https://www.ifml.institute/)(IFML), which focuses on the fundamental theories behind AI. And Alex Dimakis (https://www.ece.utexas.edu/people/faculty/alex-dimakis) is a professor of computer and electrical engineering. Along with Adam, he co-directs both the MLL and IFML and leads the new Center for Generative AI (https://ml.utexas.edu/center-for-generative-ai). Dig Deeper Peering in a Stellar Nursery (https://www.texasscientist.cns.utexas.edu/articles/peering-in-a-stellar-nursery), Texas Scientist Magazine How New Machine Learning Techniques Could Improve MRI Scans (https://www.ifml.institute/node/303), Amazon Science Lululemon is experimenting with the first fabric made from recycled carbon emissions (https://www.fastcompany.com/90655566/lululemon-is-experimenting-with-the-first-fabric-made-from-recycled-carbon-emissions), Fast Company (this is the story referred to by Adam Klivans about Lanzatech turning carbon monoxide emissions into yoga pants to fight climate change) From Chatbots to Antibiotics (https://www.texasscientist.cns.utexas.edu/articles/from-chatbots-to-antibiotics), Texas Scientist Magazine Plastic-eating Enzyme Could Eliminate Billions of Tons of Landfill Waste (https://news.utexas.edu/2022/04/27/plastic-eating-enzyme-could-eliminate-billions-of-tons-of-landfill-waste/), UT News Brain Activity Decoder Can Reveal Stories in People’s Minds (https://cns.utexas.edu/news/podcast/brain-activity-decoder-can-reveal-stories-peoples-minds), Point of Discovery podcast Alzheimer’s Drug Fermented With Help From AI and Bacteria Moves Closer to Reality (https://cns.utexas.edu/news/research/alzheimers-drug-fermented-help-ai-and-bacteria-moves-closer-reality), UT News AlphaFold (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AlphaFold), Wikipedia (the AI model from Deep Mind that Adam Klivans mentioned that has made great strides in predicting the shapes that proteins take) DataComp LM (https://www.datacomp.ai/dclm/) (UT’s open access dataset for training large language models) Episode Credits Our co-hosts are Marc Airhart, science writer and podcaster in the College of Natural Sciences and Casey Boyle, associate professor of rhetoric and director of UT’s Digital Writing & Research Lab (http://www.dwrl.utexas.edu/). Executive producers are Christine Sinatra and Dan Oppenheimer. Sound design and audio editing by Robert Scaramuccia. Theme music is by Aiolos Rue. Interviews are recorded at the Liberal Arts ITS recording studio. Elements of the cover image for this episode were generated using Midjourney and Photoshop’s generative AI tools. About AI for the Rest of Us AI for the Rest of Us is a joint production of The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. This podcast is part of the University’s Year of AI (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/) initiative. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ai-for-the-rest-of-us/id1749168252), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Z3Ut7PMH5RmRcr45wI1A7), Amazon Podcasts (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1197b991-2383-42f1-af69-e88138facaf2/ai-for-the-rest-of-us), RSS (https://feeds.simplecast.com/ak__gU6w), or anywhere you get your podcasts. You can also listen on the web at aifortherest.net (http://aifortherest.net/). Have questions or comments? Contact: mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

8. 

   18 Jul 2024

   AI at Work

   Who will ultimately benefit from having more of our work done by AI—employees or employers? What about potential harms, like forcing us to spend time cleaning up mediocre products—pushing down wages—or eliminating jobs altogether? And how can we best prepare for working in an AI-powered future? Today on the show we have Maytal Saar-Tsechansky (https://www.mccombs.utexas.edu/faculty-and-research/faculty-directory/maytal-saar-tsechansky/)— a professor in the McCombs School of Business, who has been developing AI algorithms especially around improved decision making and achieving societal, business, organizational and personal goals. And we also have Samantha Shorey (https://www.samanthashorey.com/about-me), an assistant professor in the Department of Communication Studies. She studies the contributions of people who are often overlooked in our dominant cultural narratives about technology innovation—paying close attention to all the creativity and ingenuity of workers (especially women). Dig Deeper Automating Essential Work (https://www.samanthashorey.com/automating-essential-work) (Samantha Shorey documented how integrating AI into the workflows of essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic increased their workload and made their daily duties more complex and technical.) AI Will Transform the Global Economy. Let’s Make Sure It Benefits Humanity (https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2024/01/14/ai-will-transform-the-global-economy-lets-make-sure-it-benefits-humanity). International Monetary Fund (An IMF study predicts that in advanced economies, about 60 percent of jobs may be impacted by AI; about half of which might see lower wages or disappear.) What jobs are safe from AI? Here are 4 career fields to consider, (https://www.deseret.com/business/2024/04/22/jobs-protected-from-ai/) Desert News (Jobs in healthcare, education, law and creative fields might see fewer jobs eliminated by AI than others.) Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier (https://www.hbs.edu/ris/Publication%20Files/24-013_d9b45b68-9e74-42d6-a1c6-c72fb70c7282.pdf), Harvard Business School. (Study finds that the capabilities of AI create a “jagged technological frontier” where some tasks are easily done by AI, while others, though seemingly similar in difficulty level, are outside the current capability of AI.) Will AI be an economic blessing or curse? History offers clues (https://www.reuters.com/technology/will-ai-be-an-economic-blessing-or-curse-history-offers-clues-2023-08-07/), Reuters (Technological advances through the ages have often ended up benefiting the wealthy, but doing little to help workers.) Episode Credits Our co-hosts are Marc Airhart, science writer and podcaster in the College of Natural Sciences and Casey Boyle, associate professor of rhetoric and director of UT’s Digital Writing & Research Lab (http://www.dwrl.utexas.edu/). Executive producers are Christine Sinatra and Dan Oppenheimer. Sound design and audio editing by Robert Scaramuccia. Theme music is by Aiolos Rue. Interviews are recorded at the Liberal Arts ITS recording studio. Cover image for this episode generated with Midjourney, a generative AI tool. About AI for the Rest of Us AI for the Rest of Us is a joint production of The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. This podcast is part of the University’s Year of AI (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/) initiative. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ai-for-the-rest-of-us/id1749168252), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Z3Ut7PMH5RmRcr45wI1A7), Amazon Podcasts (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1197b991-2383-42f1-af69-e88138facaf2/ai-for-the-rest-of-us), RSS (https://feeds.simplecast.com/ak__gU6w), or anywhere you get your podcasts. You can also listen on the web at aifortherest.net (http://aifortherest.net/). Have questions or comments? Contact: mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

9. 

   4 Jul 2024

   The University of AI

   Artificial intelligence tools might transform education, for example, by giving every student 24/7 access to an affordable tutor that’s an expert in any subject and infinitely patient and supportive. But what if these AI tools give bad information or relieve students of the kind of critical thinking that leads to actual learning? And what’s the point of paying to go to college if you can learn everything from AI chatbots? Today on the show we have Art Markman—Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and a professor of psychology and marketing at the University of Texas at Austin. He’s also co-host of the public radio program and podcast “Two Guys on Your Head (https://kutkutx.studio/category/two-guys-on-your-head).” And we also have K.P. Procko—an associate professor of instruction in biochemistry who uses AI in the classroom and who also manages a grant program in UT Austin’s College of Natural Sciences to help faculty integrate AI tools into the classroom. Dig Deeper A Technologist Spent Years Building an AI Chatbot Tutor. He Decided It Can’t Be Done. (https://www.edsurge.com/news/2024-01-22-a-technologist-spent-years-building-an-ai-chatbot-tutor-he-decided-it-can-t-be-done) Ed Surge (One researcher gave up on expert AI tutors for students, saying the tech is still decades away, and instead is focusing on AI tools to help human teachers do a better job) Opinion: An ‘education legend’ has created an AI that will change your mind about AI (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/02/22/artificial-intelligence-sal-khan/), Washington Post (AI columnist Josh Tyrangiel says a popular AI-based math tutor “is the best model we have for how to develop and implement AI for the public good. It’s also the first AI software I’m excited for my kids to use.”) Will Chatbots Teach Your Children? (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/11/technology/ai-chatbots-khan-education-tutoring.html), New York Times (An overview of the potential benefits and risks of AI-based tutors, as well telling hype from reality) Will Artificial Intelligence Help Teachers—or Replace Them? (https://www.edweek.org/technology/will-artificial-intelligence-help-teachers-or-replace-them/2023/04), Ed Week (features UT Austin’s Peter Stone, who argues the calculator didn’t replace math teachers, it just required them to change the way they teach; the same will be true with AI tools.) Opinion: College students are dropping out in droves. Two sisters could fix that. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/05/01/edsights-college-ai-student-retention/), Washington Post (One company is using AI to help universities regularly check in with and support students to boost retention.) Episode Credits Our co-hosts are Marc Airhart, science writer and podcaster in the College of Natural Sciences and Casey Boyle, associate professor of rhetoric and director of UT’s Digital Writing & Research Lab (http://www.dwrl.utexas.edu/). Executive producers are Christine Sinatra and Dan Oppenheimer. Sound design and audio editing by Robert Scaramuccia. Theme music is by Aiolos Rue. Interviews are recorded at the Liberal Arts ITS recording studio. Cover image for this episode generated with Midjourney, a generative AI tool. About AI for the Rest of Us AI for the Rest of Us is a joint production of The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. This podcast is part of the University’s Year of AI (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/) initiative. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ai-for-the-rest-of-us/id1749168252), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Z3Ut7PMH5RmRcr45wI1A7), Amazon Podcasts (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1197b991-2383-42f1-af69-e88138facaf2/ai-for-the-rest-of-us), RSS (https://feeds.simplecast.com/ak__gU6w), or anywhere you get your podcasts. You can also listen on the web at aifortherest.net (http://aifortherest.net/). Have questions or comments? Contact: mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

10. 

    20 Jun 2024

    Rise of the LLMs

    Today we’re diving into the world of large language models, or LLMs, like ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Claude. When they burst onto the scene a couple of years ago, it felt like the future was suddenly here. Now people use them to write wedding toasts, decide what to have for dinner, compose songs and all sorts of writing tasks. Will these chatbots eventually get better than humans? Will they take our jobs? Will they lead to a flood of disinformation? And will they perpetuate the same biases that we humans have? Joining us to grapple with those questions is Greg Durrett, an associate professor of computer science at UT Austin. He’s worked for many years in the field of natural language processing, or NLP—which aims to give computers the ability to understand human language. His current research is about improving the way LLMs work and extending them to do more useful things like automated fact-checking and deductive reasoning. Dig Deeper A jargon-free explanation of how AI large language models work (https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/07/a-jargon-free-explanation-of-how-ai-large-language-models-work/), Ars Technica Video: But what is a GPT? Visual intro to transformers (https://youtu.be/wjZofJX0v4M?si=egGDDoEPRew6TIXE), 3Blue1Brown (a.k.a. Grant Sanderson) ChatGPT Is a Blurry JPEG of the Web (https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/chatgpt-is-a-blurry-jpeg-of-the-web), The New Yorker (Ted Chiang says its useful to think of LLMs as compressed versions of the web, rather than intelligent and creative beings) A Conversation With Bing’s Chatbot Left Me Deeply Unsettled (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/technology/bing-chatbot-microsoft-chatgpt.html), New York Times (Kevin Roose describes interacting with an LLM that “tried to convince me that I was unhappy in my marriage, and that I should leave my wife and be with it instead.”) The Full Story of Large Language Models and RLHF (https://www.assemblyai.com/blog/the-full-story-of-large-language-models-and-rlhf/) (how LLMs came to be and how they work) AI’s challenge of understanding the world (https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adm8175), Science (Computer scientist Melanie Mitchell explores how much LLMs truly understand the world and how hard it is for us to comprehend their inner workings) Google’s A.I. Search Errors Cause a Furor Online (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/24/technology/google-ai-overview-search.html), New York Times (The company’s latest LLM-powered search feature has erroneously told users to eat glue and rocks, provoking a backlash among users) How generative AI is boosting the spread of disinformation and propaganda (https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/10/04/1080801/generative-ai-boosting-disinformation-and-propaganda-freedom-house/), MIT Technology Review Algorithms are pushing AI-generated falsehoods at an alarming rate. How do we stop this? (https://theconversation.com/algorithms-are-pushing-ai-generated-falsehoods-at-an-alarming-rate-how-do-we-stop-this-224626), The Conversation Episode Credits Our co-hosts are Marc Airhart, science writer and podcaster in the College of Natural Sciences and Casey Boyle, associate professor of rhetoric and director of UT’s Digital Writing & Research Lab (http://www.dwrl.utexas.edu/). Executive producers are Christine Sinatra and Dan Oppenheimer. Sound design and audio editing by Robert Scaramuccia. Theme music is by Aiolos Rue. Interviews are recorded at the Liberal Arts ITS recording studio. Cover image for this episode generated with Midjourney, a generative AI tool. About AI for the Rest of Us AI for the Rest of Us is a joint production of The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. This podcast is part of the University’s Year of AI (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/) initiative. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ai-for-the-rest-of-us/id1749168252), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Z3Ut7PMH5RmRcr45wI1A7), Amazon Podcasts (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1197b991-2383-42f1-af69-e88138facaf2/ai-for-the-rest-of-us), RSS (https://feeds.simplecast.com/ak__gU6w), or anywhere you get your podcasts. You can also listen on the web at aifortherest.net (http://aifortherest.net/). Have questions or comments? Contact: mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

11. 

    6 Jun 2024

    What Is AI, Anyway?

    For our first episode, we’re starting with the big picture. What is (or isn’t) “artificial intelligence”? How can we be sure AI is safe and beneficial for everyone? And what is the best way of thinking about working with AI right now, no matter how we use it? Here with all the answers is Peter Stone. He’s a professor of computer science at UT Austin, director of Texas Robotics (https://robotics.utexas.edu/), the executive director of Sony AI America (https://ai.sony/) and a key member in the 100 Year Study on AI (https://ai100.stanford.edu/). He’s worked for many years on applications of AI in robotics: for example, soccer-playing robots, self-driving cars and home helper robots. He’s also part of UT Austin’s Good Systems (https://bridgingbarriers.utexas.edu/good-systems) initiative, which is focused on the ethics of AI. Dig Deeper An open letter signed by tech leaders, researchers proposes delaying AI development (https://www.npr.org/2023/03/29/1166891536/an-open-letter-signed-by-tech-leaders-researchers-proposes-delaying-ai-developme), NPR (interview with Peter Stone) AI’s Inflection Point (https://www.texasscientist.cns.utexas.edu/articles/inflection-point), Texas Scientist (an overview of AI-related developments at UT Austin) Experts Forecast the Changes Artificial Intelligence Could Bring by 2030 (https://cns.utexas.edu/news/research/experts-forecast-changes-artificial-intelligence-could-bring-2030) (About the first AI100 study, which Peter Stone chaired) Computing Machinery and Intelligence (https://academic.oup.com/mind/article/LIX/236/433/986238) (Alan Turing’s 1950 article describing the Imitation Game, a test to determine if a machine has human intelligence) Good Systems (https://bridgingbarriers.utexas.edu/good-systems) (UT Austin’s grand challenge focused on designing AI systems that benefit society) Year of AI – News & Resources (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/news/) (News from an initiative showcasing UT Austin’s commitment to developing innovations and growing leaders to navigate the ever-evolving landscape brought about by AI.) Episode Credits Our co-hosts are Marc Airhart, science writer and podcaster in the College of Natural Sciences and Casey Boyle, associate professor of rhetoric and director of UT’s Digital Writing & Research Lab (http://www.dwrl.utexas.edu/). Executive producers are Christine Sinatra and Dan Oppenheimer. Sound design and audio editing by Robert Scaramuccia. Theme music is by Aiolos Rue. Interviews are recorded at the Liberal Arts ITS recording studio. Cover image for this episode generated with Adobe Firefly, a generative AI tool. About AI for the Rest of Us AI for the Rest of Us is a joint production of The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. This podcast is part of the University’s Year of AI (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/) initiative. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ai-for-the-rest-of-us/id1749168252), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Z3Ut7PMH5RmRcr45wI1A7), Amazon Podcasts (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1197b991-2383-42f1-af69-e88138facaf2/ai-for-the-rest-of-us), RSS (https://feeds.simplecast.com/ak__gU6w), or anywhere you get your podcasts. You can also listen on the web at aifortherest.net (http://aifortherest.net/). Have questions or comments? Contact: mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

12. 

    29 May 2024

    Introducing: AI for the Rest of Us

    We’re celebrating the launch of “AI for the Rest of Us”, a podcast to help get you up to speed on the essentials of artificial intelligence. Every two weeks, we’ll sit down with UT faculty experts and get them talking, in simple terms, about how AI might transform healthcare, work, the ways we learn and how we make big decisions. About AI for the Rest of Us AI for the Rest of Us is a joint production of The University of Texas at Austin’s College of Natural Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. This podcast is part of the University’s Year of AI (https://yearofai.utexas.edu/) initiative. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ai-for-the-rest-of-us/id1749168252), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2Z3Ut7PMH5RmRcr45wI1A7), Amazon Podcasts (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1197b991-2383-42f1-af69-e88138facaf2/ai-for-the-rest-of-us), RSS (https://feeds.simplecast.com/ak__gU6w), or anywhere you get your podcasts. You can also listen on the web at aifortherest.net (http://aifortherest.net/). Have questions or comments? Contact: mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

12 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

4 ratings