Responsible AI: Appropriate Trust and LLM Fabrication with Mihaela Vorvoreanu, PhD

Jul 10, 2023

Mihaela Vorvoreanu, Director of UX Research and RAI Education for Microsoft's Aether, challenges the notion of AI as super capable, discussing the need for accountability in AI systems. She reframes Large Language Models (LLMs) as systems of fabrication, shedding light on common errors and implications for users. The episode offers valuable perspectives on responsible AI, making the field more comprehensible. Topics include responsible AI, appropriate trust, LLMs as systems of fabrication, and Aether's research direction.

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Introduction

00:00 • 3min

From Professor to AI Ethics Director: A Journey of Impact

03:03 • 6min

Operationalizing Responsible AI at Microsoft

09:23 • 2min

Understanding Trust and Overreliance on AI

10:59 • 20min

Advancing Responsible AI and UX Interventions

30:45 • 2min

Exploring Resources and Recommendations for Responsible AI

32:37 • 3min

On this episode of the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas dive deep into AI ethics with Mihaela Vorvoreanu, Director of UX Research and RAI Education for Microsoft's Aether. The conversation primarily focuses on "appropriate trust" in AI, emphasizing the need for accountability in AI systems. Vorvoreanu boldly challenges listeners to rethink Large Language Models (LLMs) not merely as information retrieval systems but as systems of fabrication. She further confronts the exaggerated notion of AI as super capable and superhuman, shedding light on the common errors made by LLM-based systems and the implications for users. This episode offers invaluable perspectives on AI ethics, vigorously questioning the hyperbole surrounding AI and making the field more comprehensible to a broader audience.

In this episode, we discuss the following: [2:00] Introducing Mihaela VorVoreanu, PhD and Aether, Microsoft's initiative for AI Ethics and Effects in Engineering and Research [8:00] Discussing the concept of responsible AI [11:44] Challenging terms such as "hallucinogenic" [12:24] Reframing LLMs as systems of fabrication [30:48] Sharing information about the direction of Aether's research

Mentioned in this episode:

Advancing human-centered AI: Updates on responsible AI research
Microsoft HAX Toolkit https://aka.ms/haxtoolkit
Overreliance on AI: Literature Review https://aka.ms/overreliance_review
Responsible AI Maturity Model https://aka.ms/raimm

About our guest(s): In her current role, Mihaela leads research and education aimed at advancing the practice of RAI.

Before joining Microsoft, she had an accomplished academic career, most recently at Purdue University, where she established and led the undergraduate and graduate UX Design and research programs.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mihaelavorvoreanu/

Call-to-Action(s): If you liked this episode, check out: Examining Our Collective Relationship With AI - a Conversation With Venessa Paech. For more reflections about the intersection of community and artificial intelligence, subscribe to the Cohere Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. Share your thoughts about future guests / topics of exploration. Check out #BookDNA for a list of books, articles, and whitepapers featured on the Cohere Podcast.