• note: This blog is part two of a two part series. • Read part one on organizations using AI for humanitarian and environmental good here.] The battle for good in a world of bad I won’t be a denialist and say that AI has not aided the deterioration of human rights in many places (including the US). • But I’ll return to my argument from the last part of this series: what if we could do enough good to make a dent in the bad? • I’d argue that the work of AWS’s Compute for Climate Fellows and Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab are beginning to make just that dent-and now, faster than ever. • Much of my conversation with Kleiner Perkin’s Ryan Panchadsaram was on this ongoing battle between do-goodery and do-baddery, which plagues every part of our society-from how we run our governments to the corporations we give our money to and even the way the specific communities we live in function. • “We have to find the balance of powering ahead responsibly,” he said.
Article Summaries:
- The article highlights growing initiatives that use artificial intelligence for positive social impact, citing AWS’s Compute for Climate Fellows and Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab as examples. It underscores a dialogue with Kleiner Perkins’ Ryan Panchadsaram, who stresses the need to balance technological progress with ethical safeguards. While AI can improve services like healthcare and climate monitoring, it also poses risks-energy demands, potential misuse in defense, and discrimination. Panchadsaram argues that demonstrating tangible “net‑good” from AI can expose and counteract harmful applications. The piece calls for broader public engagement and critique to ensure AI tools are used responsibly and benefit society.
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