The MIT Media Lab and Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, both based in Cambridge, Mass., are the founding anchor institutions of a new initiative called the Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund.
The Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund is a global initiative to advance research and public understanding of AI, such as the potential impact of AI in the coming years. The fund — which will include faculty, fellows, staff and affiliates from various disciplines, such as humanities, social sciences and computing — has an initial funding of $27 million from the Knight Foundation, LinkedIn Cofounder Reid Hoffman, Omidyar Network, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Raptor Group Founder Jim Pallotta.
"AI's rapid development brings along a lot of tough challenges," said Joi Ito, director of the MIT Media Lab. "How can we best initiate a broader, in-depth discussion about how society will co-evolve with this technology, and connect computer science and social sciences to develop intelligent machines that are not only 'smart,' but also socially responsible?"