Summary
In this panel, Cheryl Kaba, Ethan Marotz, and Malena Previ explore the challenges and opportunities in designing responsibly with AI. Cheryl highlights the tension between augmentation and automation, urging critical thinking about long-term impacts, especially in education where AI risks de-skilling teachers. Ethan emphasizes AI's effect on labor, discussing the shift from skilled work to supervisory roles and the need for protections and unionization amid workplace transformations. Malena stresses ethical AI practices focused on transparency, equity, and power dynamics, advocating for participative design that includes marginalized communities. The panel debates transparency in AI confidence scores, sustainability concerns, and navigating hype cycles surrounding AI. Ultimately, they call for intentional conversations about power, ethics, and technology's impact on labor and society, urging practitioners to critically assess who benefits from AI and engage stakeholders in shaping its future.
Key Insights
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AI currently serves mostly narrow use cases but has broader systemic implications.
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Designers are shifting into supervisory roles overseeing AI output, raising concerns about de-skilling.
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Augmentation and automation exist on a continuum; many AI tools initially augment but risk full automation.
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Transparency around AI confidence has diminished compared to earlier systems like Watson.
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Ethical AI design requires incorporating multiple stakeholders, especially marginalized groups, in feedback loops.
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Sustainability is often overlooked in AI discussions despite significant environmental impacts.
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Power dynamics in AI design influence who benefits and who bears risks, and must be explicitly addressed.
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Content designers can evolve by focusing on AI explainability and risk mitigation roles.
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Unionization and labor protections are critical to address AI’s effect on job security and work roles.
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Effective ethical frameworks in AI combine principles with practical design exercises tailored to context.
Notable Quotes
"We’re in this initial stage of tinkering just to make AI behave the way we expect."
"The supervisory role that designers take over AI output signals a potential de-skilling of labor."
"We want augmentation, not automation, but the trajectory may lead us to automation anyway."
"Who gets to decide where the line is between augmentation and replacement by AI?"
"It’s important to design AI ‘with’ users, not just ‘for’ them, especially marginalized communities."
"Microsoft missed their sustainability goals because of AI’s increased carbon emissions."
"There are zero feedback loops if the people impacted by AI are not involved in its design."
"Ethics is not just about compliance; it’s about doing the right thing holistically."
"Most fears about AI are actually fears about capitalism and power."
"If you have concerns about your role with AI, have a conversation with your coworkers."
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