Technology and Public Purpose Project

Working to ensure that emerging tech is developed & managed in ways that serve the overall public good. Housed at Harvard @BelferCenter. Founded by Ash Carter.

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

PHOTO RECAP: Thanks to all who attended #TAPPSummit23 - we had a great time engaging in discussion on the cutting edge of what's happening in technology and public purpose and featuring the important research work of our fellows!

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the mission of TAPP and supported our work throughout our time at Harvard! Our research and events will continue to exist on the Belfer Center’s website here: https://t.co/735XkCs0jo #CarrytheTorch

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Genome editing therapies are in the early stage of trials in humans, so the full extent of feasibility, safety, and impacts are still unknown. Public purpose considerations include technical feasibility, safety, and ownership guidance, among others. Read more in our factsheet!

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Check out our factsheet on genome editing! 🧬 Genome Editing (also called “gene editing”) is a group of technologies that give scientists the ability to change an organism’s DNA. https://t.co/X6JdoM8F41

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Genome editing is not new—scientists have used various techniques to create genetically modified organisms (GMOs) for decades. Yet the application to humans was limited because the methods were slow, costly, and not considered safe or reliable to deliver the treatment in humans.

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

In April, China published a draft regulation on generative AI. It has a mix of sensible restrictions on AI risks + signals its typically aggressive intervention in tech. More here: https://t.co/YA861DUSE3

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

For enterprises deploying AI responsibly and efficiently, enterprises use best practices like ModelOps to ensure these deployments continuously meet regulatory requirements. Check out this podcast to learn more about AI governance essentials here: https://t.co/nXnTnSwyPS

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Former OpenAI founders built Anthropic to create a safe AI company. Their experiments involve asking a powerful LLM they've created to deceive them, in order to figure out how to prevent this behavior. https://t.co/gS4rUlRdEj

[Karen Hao @_KarenHao]

OpenAI marshaled a global pipeline of human labor for 2+ years to enable ChatGPT & GPT-4 to exist.

Workers who dealt with the worst parts are still suffering PTSD more than a year later.

My story with @dseetharaman out today on the front page of @WSJ.

https://t.co/ZU0K572ROd

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

2 spyware companies were added to a federal blacklist preventing US companies from engaging in certain trade activities with them, part of an effort to address the proliferation and misuse of commercial spyware: https://t.co/ESwtUyEgkk

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Silicon Valley start-up Cerebras revealed its newest supercomputer last week, built with specialized chips designed to power AI products. More AI supercomputers might be on the horizon: https://t.co/pnr5CN7p4v

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Last week, Meta unveiled LLaMa 2, its first LLM available to anyone to use for free. It's part of Meta's new suite of AI models, giving people options for closed-source or open-source approaches for their projects. https://t.co/oIJ7pYAkBG

[Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society @BKCHarvard]

“Having access to the experimental results that platforms themselves use to understand their products is a simple, powerful step toward effective transparency.”

- @NateLubin & @RaviDataIyer for @lawfare

https://t.co/q9EAMfmKnH

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

While differential privacy is increasingly leveraged to protect sensitive data against potential privacy attacks, policy is falling short. The privacy framework must be updated to promote investment & adoption of differential privacy tools. Read more in our primer!

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

FACTSHEET FRIDAY: Differential privacy is a safeguard used to protect an individual’s data privacy. It's a criterion that allows for the collection & publication of data patterns & trends, while protecting the privacy of individuals captured in a dataset. https://t.co/09M8GwgVZ8

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

Also, since there's no standards per se, companies are currently using differential privacy with weaker privacy protection than the research community finds acceptable.

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

A UN group set a goal for net-zero emissions for global shipping by ~2050, which is ambitious for an industry that's tough to decarbonize - but it may yet be accomplished. Slowing down ships and using biofuels are some potential routes. https://t.co/BiUHCehKmC

[Stanford HAI @StanfordHAI]

What is generative AI's impact on worker productivity? A case study from Stanford @DigEconLab and @MIT suggests access to AI assistance increased productivity by 14%, with the biggest impact on less experienced workers. https://t.co/Lwu0W5GTHN

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

The new EU/US Data Privacy Framework allows EU citizens to object when they believe their personal info has been collected improperly by US intelligence agencies - resolving an ongoing struggle btn US national security concerns & European privacy rights. https://t.co/WKebf9yufx

[Technology and Public Purpose Project @TAPP_Project]

The startup Writer builds AI tools that produce content in the voice of a specific person or brand. They imagine their tools helping a smaller # of humans writers to more efficiently and cost-effectively produce the work of many. https://t.co/Re5OdedJbt