The Individual in the Machine – Meredith Whittaker on reclaiming Privacy in the Age of AI

Technology platforms, once celebrated as a means of increased freedom, are now raising critical questions about individual privacy and geopolitics. Simultaneously, fundamental questions of power and control are leading to an increased push for “digital sovereignty” without corresponding conversations about accountability and control. At the same time, so-called Artificial Intelligence is being hailed as the solution to all of humanity’s woes, from the climate crisis to inequality.

But what if both narratives — the dominance of platforms and the salvation promised by AI — are leading us down to wrong path?

A conversation between Meredith Whittaker (President of Signal, the well-known, open-source platform for encrypted communication), and Maria Exner (Director of Publix), and Matthias Spielkamp (Executive Director and Co-founder of AlgorithmWatch).

We invited subscribers of our newsletters to this discussion on what we must do to bring technology in line with human needs - particularly in protecting the privacy of individuals from powerful platforms and operating system providers.

The event was a cooperation between the Schöpflin Foundation, Publix and AlgorithmWatch as part of the Publix Thursday series.

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