Last week I was privileged to attend an engaging World Café event at LSE. The LSE World Café series is designed to foster discussions among researchers, students, and staff on various topics. This session focused on the future of AI.

I was particularly excited to attend as I had never really considered AI’s long-term impact – my focus had always been on how it solves my immediate problems. So, I invite you to join me as I take you through my World Café experience and the insights I gained.

Introducing the World Café

The setup was cozy, with snacks and roundtables encouraging discussion. After each short presentation from LSE experts, we reflected on the topics in our groups.

My table included students from diverse departments and backgrounds, offering a range of perspectives. I found this experience to be an innovative way to encourage collaboration across the LSE community because I was able to meet new people and learn about AI use in their various sectors of interest.

Professor Martin Anthony, Director of the LSE Data Science Institute, opened with a discussion on using technology for good while mitigating its potential harms. The benefits of AI, such as it potential in the diagnosis of disease, the discovery of new drugs and the development of AI counselling apps, show examples of how technology is beneficial to our world.

Professor Anthony also highlighted AI’s ability to provide shortcuts to learning but warned that this might bypass the intellectual development that comes with traditional education.

One participant in my roundtable group countered this view, arguing that AI fosters critical thinking by making people more sceptical of misinformation – a shift from past generations who readily accepted media narratives. We are now able to separate fake news and question where information is coming from.

As a health policy student, I was particularly interested in AI’s role in data-driven decision-making. AI has the potential to enhance policy formulation, scale-up efforts, and sustainability. However, human judgment remains crucial in ensuring equity in health.

Thought-provoking conversation starters

Dr Arieh Schwartz explored with us the neural networks of human memory and how they inform AI behaviour. This research could deepen our understanding of human learning and cognition. He also touched on AI companionship, which sparked an interesting discussion. One participant remarked, half-jokingly, that AI could be a solution for loneliness.

I laughed at the thought, but Dr Dario Krpan later expanded on this idea in his session. He challenged us to define what it means to be human and consider how we distinguish ourselves from AI. He provided striking examples of people forming emotional connections with AI, blurring the lines between human and machine interactions. The discussion felt like something out of a sci-fi movie, yet here we were, debating its real-world implications.

Dr Mary Lacity grounded us in reality, reminding us that AI has existed for 85 years. She emphasised lessons from the past, such as experiences of AI’s struggle to acquire tacit knowledge, and the challenges of enterprise adoption. She noted that despite significant investments, AI implementation remains slow, reinforcing the need for human involvement to navigate its complexities. She left us with a profound takeaway: it is never as good or as bad as we you think it is going to be.

Professor Leslie Willcocks built on this by stressing that AI handles tasks, not jobs. While many fear AI will replace human workers, he highlighted enduring qualities like leadership and empathy. He also discussed the challenges AI creates, such as cybersecurity risks and data explosions. Notably, he pointed out AI’s potential to address labour shortages caused by an ageing population by automating tasks to boost productivity.

Dr Milena Tsvetkova concluded with a discussion on human-machine collaboration. She illustrated this with examples of algorithmic trading, self-driving cars, and AI-assisted medical diagnoses. Her insights on the ethical implications of AI in healthcare particularly resonated with me, as she emphasised the irreplaceable role of human empathy in patient care. She also called for a deeper understanding of cooperation, inequality, and segregation in AI-human interactions.

Reflections on the World Café and the future of AI

As AI continues to evolve and connect more aspects of our lives, understanding how humans and machines interact becomes more important. While the challenges are complex, finding the right balance between technology and human values will help shape a better future.

I will definitely be attending another World Café as it was thought provoking as well as insightful.

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