Discourse on "The Equality Machine" featuring Orly Lobel in Focus
The Center for Data Innovation is inviting readers to join a thought-provoking conversation on November 8, 2022, from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (EST). The event will feature Orly Lobel, author of the new book The Equality Machine: Harnessing Digital Technology for a Brighter, More Inclusive Future.
Orly Lobel will discuss how society can harness digital technology for noble purposes by actively steering its development and application according to core human values like equality and justice. She contends that while technology inevitably advances, it need not reinforce existing inequalities; instead, it can be directed to detect discrimination, correct historical exclusions, challenge harmful stereotypes, and address critical global issues such as climate change, poverty, and accessibility.
Daniel Castro, Director of the Center for Data Innovation, will moderate the conversation. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions for the speakers online during the event.
The Equality Machine provides concrete insights and examples on how digital technology can be used positively at scale. For instance, Lobel highlights how algorithms and data-driven systems have a comparative advantage over humans in recognizing subtle patterns of discrimination and exclusion. Through vivid storytelling, she shows technology’s potential in diverse domains—from labor and dating markets to healthcare and environmental challenges—to promote fairness and inclusion.
Regarding global issues specifically, Lobel discusses the case of healthcare, where automation and AI-driven algorithms are improving the management of chronic diseases like diabetes, potentially lowering costs and scaling care access even in resource-poor settings. She also mentions applications such as AI in breast cancer diagnosis, which can enhance accuracy while making screening more affordable and accessible globally, thus bridging severe health access gaps caused by scarcity of specialists.
Though she does not provide a detailed roadmap for climate change and poverty, the book underscores the ability of digital systems to tackle these problems by facilitating better data collection, analysis, and resource allocation, thereby enabling more informed, equitable, and effective interventions. For example, technology can expose environmental injustices or empower underserved communities by improving literacy, speech accessibility, and safety, all of which have knock-on effects on poverty reduction and social inclusion.
Orly Lobel's central insight is that technology itself is neutral but can be a powerful force for good if guided with deliberate ethical design and governance that prioritizes human dignity, equity, and inclusion over profit or convenience. She calls for restoring human agency to ensure values steer the digital future rather than blind technological determinism.
Join us on November 8, 2022, to learn more about harnessing technology for good. Register for the event here.
- Attendees can learn about harnessing technology for noble purposes such as promoting fairness and inclusion, as discussed by Orly Lobel, author of the book The Equality Machine: Harnessing Digital Technology for a Brighter, More Inclusive Future.
- Orly Lobel contends that technology, while advancing, need not reinforce existing inequalities but can be directed to detect discrimination, correct historical exclusions, and address global issues like climate change, poverty, and accessibility.
- The Equality Machine presents concrete insights on how digital technology can be used positively at scale, with examples like AI in breast cancer diagnosis and environmental challenges being addressed through technology.
- The discussion will be moderated by Daniel Castro, Director of the Center for Data Innovation, and attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions for the speakers online during the event.
