INCOSE Enchantment: AI (R)evolution
Meeting Title: AI (R)evolution: How did we get here and where are we going?
Presenter Name: Dr. Melanie E. Moses
Date: Wednesday, 8 May 2024
Time: 4:45 PM - 6:00 PM Mountain Time
Venue: Online via ZOOM
Registration: Zoom link is provided in the meeting invitation; contact the POC to request the meeting invitation.
Abstract:
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has potential to transform science and society in profoundly positive ways, but it comes with substantial risks. I discuss why Large Language Models (LLMs) are pivotal technologies with the power to change how humans interact with machines. I will review several illustrative breakthroughs from AI in science, medicine, and materials design, as well as the evidence that AI-fueled scientific progress is likely to continue. I will also review the perils of AI that are increasingly evident: disinformation, encoding systemic bias, eroding privacy, and concentrating AI capabilities in a few corporate hands, denying the very democratization of technology that has helped AI to blossom. I will conclude with my thoughts on why LLM are not on the cusp of achieving Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), and what complementary architectures, scaling approaches, and ways of thinking inspired by the science of complexity might lead in that direction.
Biography:
Dr. Melanie E. Moses is a Professor of Computer Science and Biology at the University of New Mexico and an External Faculty Member at the Santa Fe Institute. She earned a B.S. from Stanford University in Symbolic Systems and a Ph.D. in Biology from UNM. Her interdisciplinary research crosses the boundaries of Computer Science and Biology by modeling search processes in complex adaptive systems such as ant colonies and immune responses, most recently to the virus that causes COVID-19. She uses bio-inspired design of swarms of robots to autonomously cooperate with each other and adapt to monitor environmental conditions, currently focused on monitoring the gas emissions from volcanoes. She has mentored dozens of graduate and undergraduate students and led projects including NM CSforAll, the NASA Swarmathon, and the Google ExploreCSR Swarmathon:TNG to engage thousands of women and members of underrepresented groups in computer science from high school through graduate school. She co-founded the UNM-SFI Working Group on Algorithmic Justice and is on the leadership team of the UNM ADVANCE program to support the success of women faculty in STEM. She currently serves on the boards of Reboot Catalyst and the Computing Research Association's Widening Participation to increase diversity and inclusiveness in Computer Science. She is a Special Advisor to the UNM Dean of Engineering for Educational Initiatives and to the UNM Vice President for Research for Artificial Intelligence