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Dan McQuillan, a visionary in digital culture and social innovation, emphasizes the importance of understanding technology's complex relationship with society. As an academic at Goldsmiths, University of London, he fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and champions data-driven equity and ethical technology. Dan's career includes roles at Amnesty International and Social Innovation Camp, showcasing technology's potential to empower and bring about positive change. In this conversation, we discuss the challenges and opportunities at the intersection of technology and society, exploring the profound impact of our digital world.

Interviewer: Dr. Tim Scarfe

[00:00:00] Intro
[00:02:20] Dan's background and journey to academia
[00:04:10] Writing the book "Resisting AI"
[00:08:30] Necropolitics and its relation to AI
[00:10:06] AI as a new form of colonization
[00:12:57] LLMs as a new form of neo-techno-imperialism
[00:15:47] Technology for good and AGI's skewed worldview
[00:17:49] Transhumanism, eugenics, and intelligence
[00:20:45] Valuing differences (disability) and challenging societal norms
[00:26:08] Re-ontologizing and the philosophy of information
[00:28:19] New materialism and the impact of technology on society
[00:30:32] Intelligence, meaning, and materiality
[00:31:43] The constraints of physical laws and the importance of science
[00:32:44] Exploring possibilities to reduce suffering and increase well-being
[00:33:29] The division between meaning and material in our experiences
[00:35:36] Machine learning, data science, and neoplatonic approach to understanding reality
[00:37:56] Different understandings of cognition, thought, and consciousness
[00:39:15] Enactivism and its variants in cognitive science
[00:40:58] Jordan Peterson
[00:44:47] Relationism, relativism, and finding the correct relational framework
[00:47:42] Recognizing privilege and its impact on social interactions
[00:49:10] Intersectionality / Feminist thinking and the concept of care in social structures
[00:51:46] Intersectionality and its role in understanding social inequalities
[00:54:26] The entanglement of history, technology, and politics
[00:57:39] ChatGPT article - we come to bury ChatGPT
[00:59:41] Statistical pattern learning and convincing patterns in AI
[01:01:27] Anthropomorphization and understanding in AI
[01:03:26] AI in education and critical thinking
[01:06:09] European Union policies and trustable AI
[01:07:52] AI reliability and the halo effect
[01:09:26] AI as a tool enmeshed in society
[01:13:49] Luddites
[01:14:49] AI and systemic issues
[01:15:16] AI is a scam
[01:15:31] AI and Social Relations
[01:16:49] Invisible Labor in AI and Machine Learning
[01:18:38] The Need for Human Care in AI Implementation
[01:21:09] Exploititative AI / alignment
[01:23:50] Science fiction AI / moral frameworks
[01:27:22] Discussing Stochastic Parrots and Nihilism
[01:30:36] Human Intelligence vs. Language Models
[01:32:22] Image Recognition and Emulation vs. Experience
[01:34:32] Thought Experiments and Philosophy in AI Ethics (mimicry)
[01:38:42] The Trolley Problem and Self-Driving Cars
[01:41:23] Abstraction, reduction, and grounding in reality
[01:43:13] Process philosophy and the possibility of change
[01:49:55] Mental health, AI, and epistemic injustice
[01:50:30] Hermeneutic injustice and gendered techniques
[01:52:03] Machine learning and welfare fraud detection
[01:53:57] AI and politics
[01:55:28] Random forests and Goodhart's law
[01:59:24] Epistemic injustice and testimonial injustice
[02:03:02] Suspicion and socially stratified experiences
[02:07:39] Isnt language oppressive
[02:10:51] YT comment rant!
[02:11:46] Fascism and AI discussion
[02:13:24] Violence in various systems
[02:16:52] Recognising systemic violence
[02:19:14] Technical systems and feedback loops
[02:21:41] Language and its impact on understanding violence
[02:22:35] Fascism in Today's Society
[02:27:35] Defining Fascism and its Emergence
[02:32:13] The Law and its Limitations
[02:33:33] Pace and Scale of Technological Change
[02:37:38] Alternative approaches to AI and society
[02:40:44] Unintelligible Beginnings and Pragmatic Approaches
[02:42:38] Algorithmic Systems and AI in Decision-Making
[02:44:09] Self-Organization at Successive Scales / cybernetics
[02:46:26] The Importance of Pluralism and Local Expertise
[02:48:24] Eliminating subversive elements

References are in the pinned comment