Automated Societies

In this episode of ADM+S In Conversation, Natalie Campbell sits down with Dr Jathan Sadowski and Dr Kelly Lewis to talk about their recent paper, co-authored with Dr Zofia Bednarz, ' Risk, value, vitality: The moral economy of a global behavioural insurance platform'. Jathan and Kelly discus the growing model of ‘behavioural insurance’ that has become a major approach in the industry, wher...

This panel conversation was part of a recent event hosted by the Platform Economies Research Network (PERN), in collaboration with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society.  The event titled 'Digital Platform Economies: Value from data?' was held at the New School in New York City on 24-26 April 2024.  This panel explores value propositions articulated by plat...

This panel conversation was part of a recent event hosted by the Platform Economies Research Network (PERN), in collaboration with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society.  The event titled 'Digital Platform Economies: Value from data?' was held at the New School in New York City on 24-26 April 2024.  The session examines how core concepts, such as commodity,...

This panel conversation was part of a recent event hosted by the Platform Economies Research Network (PERN), in collaboration with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society.  The event titled 'Digital Platform Economies: Value from data?' was held at the New School in New York City on 24-26 April 2024.  This session examines how economies and economic objects a...

This panel conversation was part of a recent event hosted by the Platform Economies Research Network (PERN), in collaboration with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society.  The event titled 'Digital Platform Economies: Value from data?' was held at the New School in New York City on 24-26 April 2024.  This session focuses on digital twins, which are virtual r...

This keynote conversation was part of a recent event hosted by the Platform Economies Research Network (PERN), in collaboration with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society. The event titled 'Digital Platform Economies: Value from data?' was held at the New School in New York City on 24-26 April 2024. Featured in this keynote conversation is ADM+S director Pr...

In this episode we're joined by Prof Paul Henman from the University of Queensland to discuss ' Automated decision-making in New South Wales: mapping and analysis of the use of ADM systems by State and Local governments ', a research report produced in partnership by the ADM+S Centre and the New South Wales Ombudsman. On 8 March 2024, ADM+S researchers Prof Kim Weatherall and Dr Jose-M...

This debate was held as part of the 2023 ADM+AS Web Search Revolution Symposium on 17 August at RMIT University, and online. A lively debate on the implications of Generative AI and its societal impact. Featuring experts in the field, this debate will shed light on the serious hazards and enormous potential of Generative AI. The affirmative side will argue that we must stop progress in this techno...

This panel was held at the 2023 ADM+S Web Search Revolution Symposium on 17 August at RMIT University, and online. How did search engines develop over the 20th century? Mark Sanderson and Julian Thomas will show how expensive subscription-based search companies formed in the 1960s and largely unchanged over three decades were wiped out by web search that was free, fast, and easy to use, drawing co...

This panel was held at the 2023 ADM+S Web Search Revolution Symposium on 17 August at RMIT University, and online. Although generative AI – and tools like ChatGPT – show that the future of search will certainly be complex, this panel will engage in longer-term stargazing to examine what the reality of search may be in 25-30 years. Through an interactive discussion format, our experts will imagine...

This panel was held at the 2023 ADM+S Web Search Revolution Symposium on 17 August at RMIT University, and online. With billions of queries serviced every day, web search has profoundly reshaped the way we relate to information. But search has itself been reshaped by law, regulation, markets, user interactions, and other social forces. This panel asks: how can we understand the historical evolutio...

This keynote presentation was part of the 2023 ADM+S Web Search Revolution Symposium on 17 August at RMIT University, and online. What did web search replace? What are the origins of web search and how it has evolved in the last 2-3 decades? A look at the history and impact of search and a look forward to where we are going – including neural methods which have been used in web search for a while...

This keynote presentation was part of the 2023 ADM+S Web Search Revolution Symposium on 17 August at RMIT University, and online. The prominent model of retrieving, evaluating, and using relevant information from databases, collections, and the web is going through a significant transformation. This is largely due to wide-scale availability of various generative AI systems that can take in natural...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. In this episode, panelists discuss the Australian Ad Observatory project and present early findings from their ad analysis, by focussing on three case studies: greenwashing, gambling and alcohol. Speakers: Assoc Prof Nicholas Carah, University of Queensland Lauren Ha...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. From claims that generative AI tools democratise creativity by making production ‘radically accessible’, critical implications for authorship, intellectual property, craft, and possibilities for opting out, to how the institutions of art are responding to these devel...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists discuss ongoing and emerging challenges of engaging with automated systems, where accessing information and entertainment is increasingly fraught for people who are already digitally excluded. Speakers: Dr Jenny Kennedy, RMIT University Dr Justine Humphry,...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists discuss the nuances and specificities of online misogyny and its derived harms within a context of emerging online safety regulation in many countries around the world, and address the practical opportunities and limitations of automation to identify and mo...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists examine the politics and practicalities of discoverability and interface design across streaming services, smart TVs, and public-service media.  Speakers: Assoc Prof Ramon Lobato, RMIT University Dr Kylie Pappalardo, Queensland University of Technology Loui...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists discuss why Addressing themes ranging from social media algorithms to remote sensing technologies to the practicalities of newsroom photo editing, this panel conversations explores new ways of seeing news events and what they mean for practitioners, researc...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists examine how Facial recognition technology is being used and where; how it intersects with institutions, laws, economies - and what we can do about it.  Speakers: Prof Kim Weatherall, University of Sydney Dr Jake Goldenfein, University of Melbourne Prof Edwa...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists discuss how algorithmic assistance may be beneficial for fact checkers to assist in the misinformation management process, without taking away agency from experts.  Speakers: Dr Damiano Spina, RMIT University Dr Danula Hettiachchi, RMIT University Dr Anne K...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists discuss the opportunities and shortcomings of designing and interacting with voice news assistants and news chatbots, and the bright and dark sides of the news chatbot ecologies.  Speakers: Dr Silvia Montaña-Niño, Queensland University of Technology Dr Jona...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists address rapid developments in internet infrastructures and AI technologies, and discuss questions around the dynamic possibilities and uncertain pathways these developments present for internet governance, social media platforms, media industries, and digit...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. Panelists provide a brief introduction of AI applications in China’s newsrooms and on social media platforms, and discuss the role of AIGC in content creation/production, circulation, and governance/moderation in the Chinese context.  Speakers: Prof Mark Andrejevic,...

This panel discussion took place at the 2023 ADMS+S Automated News and Media Symposium, 13-14 July 2023 at the University of Sydney. This panel of AI researchers, ethicists, and industry leaders  discuss open problems and ethical dilemmas including responsible prompt engineering of Gen AI. Speakers: Prof Flora Salim, UNSW Dr Hao Xue, UNSW Prof Tomasz Bednarz, NVIDIA Morgan Dutton, Amazon Web Servi...