Naomi Brockwell, Founder of NBTV Media, discusses the true cost of “free tools,” and why we need a major mindset shift when it comes to trading value for value. She also discusses the illusion of privacy versus the reality that data brokers are working in, and how AI may make the data broker’s job obsolete. Key Takeaways:  The easiest ways to reduce your digital footprint, and unpacking the switching costs of transitioning to privacy respecting alternatives. How AI can democratize the...

David Kanter, Executive Director at MLCommons, discusses the work they’re doing with MLPerf Benchmarks, creating the world’s first industry standard approach to measuring AI speed and safety. He also shares ways they’re testing AI and LLMs for harm, to measure—and, over time, reduce—the potential harms of AI. Key Takeaways:  How they’re using research to help build public confidence in AI and emerging technologies The types of questions enterprise customers should ask their system...

Carissa Véliz, Associate Professor at the Institute for AI at the University of Oxford, discusses how our personal data is the currency of power for tech giants, and ways the balance can be tipped back in favor of individual rights. We also address the privacy implications of large language models, and consider whether OpenAI and tools like ChatGPT are complying with the GDPR. Key Takeaways:  How the erosion of privacy poses a real threat to our fundamental values of democracy Why she...

Ryan Brown (Filterset Engineer at Brave) and Peter Snyder (Senior Privacy Researcher at Brave) discuss the latest advancements in ad-blocking technology, and how Brave's control over its browser stack plays a crucial role in maintaining a private yet fully operational Web experience. They also reflect on the resilience of the ad-blocking community, especially in response to the looming changes of Manifest V3, and its potential to reshape the extension landscape. Key Takeaways:  How...

Josh Swihart, CEO at Electric Coin Co., discusses public perception of pseudonymity versus privacy, and how this impacts adoption of privacy preserving products. He also explores the increasing challenge of crypto wars—which impacts cryptographic and privacy rights worldwide—and why he believes encryption should be mandated for US citizens. Key Takeaways: Why physical cash should be treated/regulated differently than digital money Examples of regulation and policy overreach, and how...

Andy Yen, Founder & CEO at Proton, discusses how big tech is presenting a false sense of privacy to its users—and why this is dangerous. He also unpacks the confusion between privacy and anonymity, and how where you live impacts your right to each.  Key Takeaways: How Proton has attracted users and early adopters while sticking to a privacy-first marketing strategy. What we can learn from the cultural shift to environmental responsibility as it relates to privacy, and to the future...

Preston Byrne, Partner at Brown Rudnick LLP, discusses the benefit of using public private keys as a solution to authenticate communication, and avoid both AI scams and fraud. He also shares his predictions for how AI and cryptocurrency will work together in the future, leaning on each other’s polar-opposite strengths. Key Takeaways:  The role that crypto and AI could play in the upcoming US elections Challenges with achieving harmony in global regulations for cryptocurrency and...

Anupam Chander, Scott Ginsburg Professor of Law and Technology at Georgetown, and Visiting Scholar at Harvard’s Institute for Rebooting Social Media, discusses the future of humanity during a wave of paid technology innovation. He also shares how AI is impacting digital sovereignty. Key Takeaways:  Why Section 230 of the US Communications Decency Act has been so important for people online How US Internet Laws impact its dominance as a world innovation leader Ways that regulators...

Shubham Shrivastava, Head of Machine Learning at Kodiak Robotics, discusses how AI is solving the increasing challenges within the long haul trucking industry, specifically with safety and driver supply. He also provides practical examples of Kodiak’s safety strategy and redundancies they’ve put in place. Key discussion topics: How soon we can expect to see autonomous trucks on the road The balance between AI innovation and regulation, and how Kodiak is navigating regulation at both...

Gabriele Mazzini, Team Leader - AI Act at the European Commission, discusses the risk-based approach they took when crafting specific rules for the Artificial Intelligence Act (versus simply opposing the technology as a whole). He also discusses the complexities involved in regulating emerging technologies that evolve at a much faster pace than the legislation itself.  Key Takeaways: Recommendations put forward for regulating emerging technologies within the AI Act What the process has...

Austin Campbell, Managing Partner at Zero Knowledge Consulting,  discusses the outdated infrastructure of finance and how blockchain is positioned to solve many of the current challenges. He also tackles the complex issues regulators face, and cultural hesitancy towards harnessing the full potential of innovations like blockchain. Key takeaways:  The power of self custody, and how emerging technologies can help avoid events like the 2008 financial crisis The anticipated collaborations...

Sexually-explicit AI-generated images of Taylor Swift surfaced last week and went viral on many platforms - particularly X (formerly Twitter) who responded by removing the ability to search the singer-songwriter’s name alltogether. In this bonus solo episode with Luke, he discusses what we can learn from this scandal. Key Takeaways: - What are deepfakes and should we be concerned? - Can we expect new legislation to come from this? - Debating how much the government should or shouldn’t...

Kate Brady, Head of Next Gen D2C Consumer Experience & Direct Digital Marketing Capabilities at PepsiCo, shares how mainstream brands and marketers can utilize Web3 technologies. Kate’s team is currently testing a number of next gen initiatives as part of PepsiCo's newly established Web3 & Metaverse Center of Enablement.  We also discuss the removal of third-party trackers and moving towards a private internet while still owning the communication with your audience and prioritizing...

Nell Watson is a pioneering ethics and machine intelligence researcher, and president of EthicsNet. Here, she discusses different scenarios in which things could go “wrong” with emerging technologies, and lead to AI working against the best interests of humanity instead of for it. She also shares the amazing work that’s being done now to prevent this. Key Takeaways: Why AI safety and AI ethics teams need to collaborate and work together over their shared goals, and build better bridges The...

Keith Sonderling, Commissioner at the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), discusses how HR companies and employers are using AI, and the implications of this usage on employment law. He stresses the importance of governance and regulation to avoid discrimination, prevent HR biases at scale, and to ultimately uphold our civil rights. Key takeaways:  How to use machine learning to make HR decisions that were historically done by a human Examples of how AI and HR...

Gilad Lumbroso, Squad Lead @ AI21 Labs, discusses the various ways we overestimate AI, and the gaps that currently need to be filled in AI capabilities. He also explains the role that natural language will play in the evolution of new AI, and discusses how to apply natural language usability as a key part of product development.  Key Takeaways:  How to deal with hallucinations and misleading information  Prompts for leveraging ChatGPT as a learning tool Ways that creators can use...

Greg Diamos, Co-Founder of Lamini, shares how their discovery of the Scaling Laws Recipe led to rapid evolution of language learning models, and inspired Lamini’s product offering. He also discusses his message for policy makers, including what we should be worried about, and what pitfalls we should work to avoid.   Key Takeaways:  Why you should build your own LLM How language learning models have impacted ChatGPT Why this is the best time for software engineers to enter the space ...

Kleomenis Katevas, Machine Learning Researcher at Brave Software, discusses how we can build trust in AI with the general public by making data as safe and secure as possible. He also unpacks some of the myths the general public holds about AI, how to debunk these myths, and tangible steps companies can take to reduce privacy concerns with AI. Key Takeaways:  How Twitter (now known as X) can be a great resource for learning more about AI, along with specific accounts and thought leaders...

Grant Halloran, CEO of Planful, discusses AI’s impact on CFOs and finance leaders, and ways these technologies have changed their role within organizations. He also shares how the financial industry will witness a future where extensive human involvement in routine financial tasks is reduced in favor of focusing on high-value, strategic work. Key Takeaways:  How AI is making non-financial people more financially savvy, faster Ways everyday people can better utilize artificial...

Brian Bondy, Co-Founder and CTO of Brave, discusses the recent launch of Leo, Brave’s browser-native AI assistant. Brian discusses the benefits of having AI directly in the browser, and how Brave has actually been using AI in its tech stack for years. Key Takeaways:  Resources for learning about neural networks and machine learning What we should and shouldn’t be worried about with artificial intelligence  Brave’s commitment to continue protecting personal data and privacy as new...

What impact will Generative AI have on Higher Education? This week’s guests tackle this question head on. Ravi Pendse and Bob Jones lead the development of ITS AI Services, a suite of AI tools that they believe makes the University of Michigan the first university anywhere to provide a custom AI platform for its entire community. In this episode of the Brave Technologist Podcast, they’ll discuss why they’re embracing GenAI (versus trying to ban it) with their students, and share some...

Josep M. Pujol, Chief of Search at Brave, and Subu Sathyanarayana, Director of Engineering for Brave Search, discuss the history of Internet search and how it's quickly evolving with the adoption of AI. They share its current limitations and their biggest challenges (noise reduction, relevance and referencing) in their pursuit of improving search through Brave Search.  Key Takeaways:  Problems with traditional search options like Google and how the role of “trust” has evolved as the...

Dr. Kjell Carlsson, Head of Data Science Strategy & Evangelism at Domino Data Lab, contemplates AI’s impact on human intelligence and its implications on understanding ourselves. We also discuss ways that artificial intelligence’s value is underestimated in society and its less-known applications. Key Takeaways:  How AI can help us actually boost human intelligence, and what we’ve learned about our own limitations through advancements with technologies like generative AI Making use...

Deconstructing AI and Bleeding-Edge Tech The Brave Technologist is here to shed light on the opportunities and challenges of emerging tech. To make it digestible, less scary, and more approachable for all! Join us as we embark on a mission to demystify artificial intelligence, challenge the status quo, and empower everyday people to embrace the digital revolution. Whether you're a tech enthusiast, a curious mind, or an industry professional, this podcast invites you to join the conversation...