Beating the Bot

AI developers are known for making bold statements about their products. In 2023, OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman proposed that AI could be creative. A year later, his then-Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati asserted AI could even take over some creative jobs. To Professor...

Giving for the Greater Good

Dried blood spot cards contain tiny blood samples from newborns that allow for early detection of disease. They also contain valuable information for medical research. But using the cards for research is not a given. Parents worry that if the cards are shared or...

A Better Way to Share

‘The more data you have, the better the result’ is an idea that underpins AI and machine learning. By collecting huge amounts of data, it becomes possible to discern patterns and make accurate predictions or decisions. But that approach often fails to consider that...

A Catch-22 for Consumers

Companies collect lots of data about their customers and try to use that to their benefit. 25 years ago, Amazon was discovered to be charging existing customers higher prices than new ones. Other firms soon followed suit. Orbitz, for instance, offers cheaper hotel...

When Privacy Is Threatened

The prospect of having one’s personal information taken and used without consent has become an ever more urgent problem. Prior to the proliferation of computers, and later digital networks, such information could only be accessed in physical form. Now, with an...