Common sense is not so common. Yejin Choi, professor and computer science researcher, thinks we need to take AI way more seriously for this very reason. Even for the most advanced AI systems, common sense remains difficult to program. Stupid AI isn’t funny, it’s dangerous, and Choi’s years exploring the ethics behind machine learning is distilled into her TED talk. We got to speak to her hours after she delivered it, and explained to us why anything that is learning from the internet is unavoidably going to have racist, sexist and ableist tendencies that we have to actively correct for. Most importantly: we need regulation. Choi believes in fostering a diverse community of thinkers, including philosophers and psychologists, working collectively to bridge AI's gaps of understanding to include ethics, racial equity, and common sense.
