Jenn is the Responsible AI lead and Co-investigator for SAINTS.
Her background is in philosophy and social science, and her work focuses on the role of responsibility in science and the public perception of science and technology.
Jenn is a member of the Department of Sociology here at the University of York. In this post, she tells us more about her own research, and her role in the SAINTS CDT.
What is your role in SAINTS, and what does it involve?
I am the Responsible AI lead for SAINTS and Co-Investigator from the Department of Sociology. My role involves coordinating training in Responsible AI (RAI) to ensure that students’ AI safety research is conducted responsibly, serves the public interest and responds to the needs of diverse stakeholders. I will also help students with their RAI action plans and RAI reflections from secondments with project partners.
Tell us about your research interests. What do you find most interesting or enjoyable about your work?
My research career began with my PhD which focused on epistemic responsibility in science. I then researched scientific diplomacy and policy before moving into emerging technologies in terms of ethics, public perception and science communication.
Most of my work in recent years has focused on AI, especially the societal implications in health, education and the creative industries. I have a particular interest in responsibility, algorithmic justice and representation. What I find most enjoyable is working across disciplines. For instance, I am currently working on a project on the voice rights of the individual with Law and Linguistics in the age of AI.
What working achievement or initiative are you most proud of?
I am most proud of my fellowship which focused on music and AI. It was great to design my own project on the way AI is portrayed to the public via documentaries and sound.
Relating to this, I am also very proud of some work I did on AI voices and conversational AI for children. This involved consulting for the BBC on the ethical use of conversational AI for children’s storytelling, which was very interesting.
What’s next on the research horizon for you?
Currently, my main research focus is a project funded by YorVoice focusing on the voice rights of the individual, where I am a Co-Investigator.
The project, ‘Setting the Legal Tone: Towards a framework for the protection of rights in voice personality‘, explores whether a framework concerning the rights and responsibilities of voice personality can be developed. I am working with Peter Harrison (Principal Investigator for Law) and James Tompkinson (Co-Investigator for Languages and Linguistics).
Alongside this, I am continuing my research into attitudes towards AI generated music and I have a growing interest in the role of AI in mental health and educational practice.
Can you share some interesting work that you read about recently?
I have been reading about the environmental cost of AI, which worries me given the huge challenges we face with respect to climate change. It is a cost which is not discussed enough in the literature and is gaining more attention of late, and it is too important for us to ignore.
Beyond this, I’ve been reading the work of sociologist Walter Benjamin and his essay ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction‘, which highlights issues of authenticity in original (art)works vs reproduced art.
What are your thoughts on the future of AI?
I don’t really think my thoughts matter: I think the horse has bolted.
What we do now is to attempt to minimise harm and raise awareness and understanding of this technology. Where AI is being seen as the potential solution to problems in areas it is not yet used, my view is “can we pause and ask if we need to use it at all?”
Things are moving too quickly to properly assess the impacts, but we know the fundamentals and so many people are being left behind. We need to bring in a range of views and voices to AI development and big tech need to stop and think (for once) and stop firing their responsible AI teams (for once).
What one piece of advice do you have for SAINTS postgraduate researchers?
Stay curious and be happy to change lanes. It might seem like interdisciplinary research is tough but you might just be surprised where that conversation will take you.
