041: Ethics, AI and Collective Happiness With John C Havens

Guest Overview 

Massachusetts born, a psychiatrist father and minister mother, drove his ambition to be a priest, but evolved to be an actor, musician, author and expert on the ethics of Artificial Intelligence is this week’s guest John C Havens. oh he’s also a wicked harmonica player -

John is currently the Executive Director of The IEEE Global Initiative on Ethics of Autonomous and Intelligent Systems (A/IS). Over the past three years, The Initiative produced Ethically Aligned Design, a free, creative commons book over 250 pages long written by 600 global experts created to ensure A/IS honors human rights and end-user values while prioritizing human wellbeing and ecological sustainability. John is the author of Heartificial Intelligence: Embracing Humanity to Maximize Machines, a frequent contributor to Mashable and The Guardian, a former EVP of a top ten PR firm, founder of a non-profit called The Happathon Project, and a former professional actor for over fifteen years. You can find John on twitter @johnchavens.

John's views are his own on the show and don't necessarily represent and formal positions of the IEEE.

In part one of this 2 parter, John and I discuss his upbringing, parental impact, the role of introspection on his journey and his early experiences acting alongside some of Hollywood’s finest.

In part two we will dive deep into the ethics of AI and Johns vision for a more sustainable future society.

I hope you enjoy Part One and insight into vision, passion, and faith of John C Havens.

What we discuss

His early years

Growing up overweight

His father’s impact

Introspection

Cathartic impact of music

His relationship with Christ

Following his parent's guidance

Worth and love

Play and acting in early development

Attending a Christian college

On recognizing truth and love

Empathy and kindness

The influence of a theatre professor

Attending Williamstown Summer theatre

His explanation of the craft of acting

Steel Pier

How he became involved in IEEE and developing AI Code of Ethics

Asimov Laws of Robotics

Follow on Social 

Twitter

Links In The Show 

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