Timnit Gebru is a co-author of one of the most influential research papers on AI from this decade, which coined the term “stochastic parrots” to describe large language models. Following her very public departure from Google in 2020, Gebru founded the Distributed AI Research (DAIR) Institute, an organization that describes itself as doing independent, community-rooted work, free from the pervasive influence of Big Tech. She’s now DAIR’s executive director. And recently, she was selected as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in AI — like several other guests you hear from in season one of this show.

Gebru sat down with host Raffi Krikorian for a wide-ranging and deep conversation about AI, touching on things like the obfuscation around its capabilities, what Big Tech hopes we don’t pay attention to, and the importance of imagining alternative possible futures.

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Technically Optimistic is produced by Emerson Collective with music by Mattie Safer.

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