AI and the Future of Work: Artificial Intelligence in the Workplace, Business, Ethics, HR, and IT for AI Enthusiasts, Leaders and Academics

340: Critical Thinking over Code: Tess Posner, AI4ALL CEO, on Raising Responsible AI Leaders

Dan Turchin Season 6 Episode 340

Tess Posner is the CEO and founding leader of AI4ALL, a nonprofit that works to ensure the next generation of AI leaders is diverse and well-quipped to innovate. Since joining in 2017, she has focused on embedding ethics, responsibility, and real-world impact into AI education. Her work connects students from underrepresented backgrounds to hands-on projects and mentorships that prepare them to lead in tech. Beyond her role at AI4ALL, Tess is a musician whose 2023 EP Alchemy has over 600,000 streams on Spotify. She was named a 2020 Brilliant Woman in AI Ethics Hall of Fame Honoree and holds degrees from St. John’s University and Columbia University.

In this conversation, we discuss:

  • Why AI literacy is becoming essential for everyone, from casual users to future developers
  • The role of project-based learning in helping students see the real-world impact of AI
  • What it takes to expand AI access for underrepresented communities
  • How AI can either reinforce bias or drive real change, depending on who’s leading its development
  • Why schools should stop penalizing AI use and instead teach students to use it with curiosity and responsibility
  • Tess’s views on balancing optimism and caution in the development of AI tools

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