Pivoting fast for mission success: Meeting the opportunity of AI with responsible practices
In part one of the Pivoting Fast keynote from the Global Nonprofit Leaders Summit, Jaime Teevan presented a broad view of large language model (LLM) innovation. Starting with the analogy of “Mad Libs” to introduce how AI learns language patterns, she shows how AI has quickly scaled from predicting a word to extrapolating complex ideas. From her early work as a grad student where AI was “A promise and a dream,” she has witnessed how AI has become a reality now accessible to everyone. Jamie shares her personal experience of AI and its overwhelming opportunity and responsibility.
Key topics summarized by Microsoft Copilot:
- Large language models: LLMs are powerful tools for sequence prediction that can help with various productivity tasks, but also require responsible and creative use. (Video timestamp: 00:21)
- Research on language model impact: Studies have shown that language models can make people faster and more efficient at common tasks, but also help close the gap between experienced and inexperienced workers. (12:03)
- New ways of using language models: Language models can also act as provocateurs that challenge us to think in new ways, ask better questions and explore different perspectives. (14:56)
Watch Jaime's keynote: "Pivoting fast: What can AI do?"
Meeting the opportunity of AI with responsible policies
In part two, Natasha Crampton, Vice President, Chief Responsible AI Officer at Microsoft, and Rebecca Finlay, CEO, Partnership on AI, follow Jamie Teevan’s presentation with a conversation on how pivoting towards AI requires intention, responsible policies, and careful assessment to make sure that equity is at the center of innovation.
Key topics summarized by Microsoft Copilot:
- Rebecca's vision for the Partnership on AI in five years: Rebecca outlined some of the goals and projects that the Partnership on AI is working on, such as driving policy innovations, widening the diversity of voices, and tackling the future of work challenges. (Video timestamp: 7:39)
- Examples of AI use cases in the nonprofit sector: Rebecca gave three examples of how nonprofits are using AI for education, science and social services, highlighting the potential and the challenges of the technology. (12:08)
- Risks of AI deployment for nonprofit leaders: Rebecca emphasized the importance of data security, data quality, data ethics, human-centered design, stakeholder engagement, and human-AI interaction as key areas to consider and mitigate risks. (16:14)
- Tools and practices for responsible AI: Rebecca and Natasha mentioned some of the resources that the Partnership on AI and Microsoft have developed and shared, such as documentation guidelines, impact assessment templates, and community standards. (21:14)
- Public policy engagement on AI: Rebecca and Natasha discussed the role of the Partnership on AI and Microsoft in providing evidence and guidance to policymakers, and the need for more involvement from the nonprofit sector and the global south. (25:27)
Watch the conversation with Rebecca and Natasha: "Practicing responsible AI"
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