Beth Rudden, CEO of Bast AI, presents a thought-provoking perspective on ethical AI design, emphasizing systems that respect user consent and enhance understanding. She discusses the importance of ontologies and graph models for genuine comprehension, contrasting them with traditional AI's reliance on vast datasets. Beth envisions local libraries as hubs for community-specific language models, empowering neighborhoods with tailored information. The conversation delves into the ethical landscape of AI and its transformative potential for news deserts and emergency response, urging a wiser approach to technology.
39:15
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
menu_book Books
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
insights INSIGHT
Friction is Key to Understanding
Understanding requires friction and scaffolding, not just massive data ingestion.
Bast AI builds deterministic systems grounded in ontologies to avoid hallucinations while leveraging generative AI.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Build Transparent AI Interfaces
Users need transparent AI tools with clear input and output control.
Provide interfaces like steering wheels and gas tanks to steer and fuel AI meaningfully.
insights INSIGHT
AI Is Sensitive, Humans Are Specific
AI excels at sensing large patterns, humans excel at choosing which patterns matter.
Human specificity complements AI sensitivity for better understanding and results.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
In 'Crossing the Chasm', Geoffrey A. Moore explores the Technology Adoption Life Cycle, which includes innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards. He highlights the significant gap or 'chasm' between early adopters and the early majority, where early adopters are willing to sacrifice for the advantage of being first, while the early majority waits for evidence of productivity improvements. The book provides strategies for narrowing this chasm, including choosing a target market, understanding the whole product concept, positioning the product, building a marketing strategy, and selecting the most appropriate distribution channels and pricing. The third edition includes new examples, strategies for digital marketing, and connections to Moore's subsequent works like 'Inside the Tornado'.
Ever wonder if there's a better way to build AI? One that doesn't rely on scraping the internet without consent or encouraging dependency on opaque systems?Beth Rudden, CEO of Bast AI, offers a refreshing perspective that challenges everything we've come to accept about artificial intelligence.
At the heart of Beth's approach lies a fundamental truth: understanding is a labor, not an act. Unlike mainstream AI systems that statistically brute-force syntax without context, Bast AI grounds information in ontologies and graph models, providing the necessary scaffolding for genuine comprehension. The result?
Deterministic systems that never hallucinate or go off-script while still leveraging generative capabilities for appropriate applications.
Beth draws a crucial distinction between what AI and humans do best - machines excel at sensing patterns across vast datasets, while humans determine which patterns actually matter. This insight leads to a compelling vision for the future: local libraries housing community-specific language models, with librarians serving as ethical stewards of information. Such systems could revitalize news deserts, enhance emergency response, and preserve cultural context in ways centralized models simply cannot.
The conversation ventures beyond technical discussions into profound territory - challenging our relationship with technology itself. When Beth says, "AI is great if you're already wise," she invites us to consider how intentional we are with these powerful tools.
Are we asking meaningful questions or simply seeking shortcuts?
Are we curating quality inputs or accepting whatever data corporations feed into their algorithms?
Ready to reimagine what AI could be? Join this thought-provoking discussion about creating technology that truly serves humanity rather than merely extracting value from it.
---
The Human Layer is produced by DesertRat Productions a boutique narrative studio architecting knowledge systems for the next world. We executive produce podcasts, community sanctuaries, and cultural frameworks that preserve wisdom, catalyze emergence, and compost empire into something regenerative.
The Human Layer 
