Technology with a Conscience: Exploring Ethics in Computing

Abstract

Technology is transforming our world at an unprecedented pace, but this rapid progress brings with it significant ethical challenges. Recent events, like widespread privacy breaches and the rise of biased AI systems, have rightly sparked public concern and scrutiny. Gartner's research reinforces this, highlighting digital ethics and privacy as critical trends that demand immediate attention. This panel will delve into the core ethical issues in computing today. Together, we'll explore crucial questions, such as: How can we foster innovation while ensuring ethical responsibility? What strategies can effectively mitigate algorithmic bias? What role should governments play in overseeing the ethical development and use of technology? And how can we ensure that the benefits of technology are shared equitably across all of society?

Panelist: Tyler Cook

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Tyler Cook is a postdoctoral fellow in the School of Public Policy at Georgia Tech. His research concerns various topics in ethical theory and the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI), especially machine ethics: the area of AI ethics that is concerned with questions regarding the development of AI systems with ethical reasoning capacities. In particular, he is interested in taxonomic questions about the different kinds of ethical AI systems we might seek to develop, design questions about how we should approach the building of such systems, and questions about the potential risks and benefits associated with the development of ethical AI. Tyler also teaches courses on AI ethics and policy, philosophy of technology, and ethical theory, among others.

Panelist: Lauren Klein

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Lauren Klein is a Winship Distinguished Research Professor and Associate Professor in the departments of Quantitative Theory & Methods and English at Emory University. Previously, she taught in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication at Georgia Tech. Klein directs the Emory Digital Humanities Lab and the Atlanta Interdisciplinary AI Network. Her research brings together computational and critical methods in order to explore questions of gender, race, and justice. Klein is author (with Catherine D’Ignazio) of the award-winning Data Feminism (MIT Press, 2020), and editor (with Matthew K. Gold) of Debates in the Digital Humanities (Univ. of Minnesota Press), among other publications. She is currently completing Data by Design: An Interactive History of Data Visualization, forthcoming from MIT Press in 2026.

Panelist: Ayush Panda

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Ayush Panda is a fourth-year Computer Science undergraduate at Georgia Tech and co-director of the AI Safety Initiative @ Georgia Tech. This student-led organization promotes awareness and development of AI safety across campus. Ayush focuses on AI alignment or ensuring artificial intelligence systems act consistently in society's collective interest. His work centers on designing technical mechanisms to achieve robust alignment between AI capabilities and human values. Through his leadership and research, Ayush contributes to the growing field of AI safety, helping prepare future technologists to address the ethical and catastrophic risks posed by increasingly powerful AI systems.

Panelist: Savneet Singh

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Savneet Singh is a passionate Tech Ethicist and advocate for responsible emerging technologies. Her work focuses on promoting the development of safe, ethical, unbiased, and trustworthy emerging technological solutions. As a thought leader in this field, she regularly shares her insights through articles, podcasts, and speaking engagements. She is a visiting faculty teaching Ethics of AI both at Emory and California State University. Currently, Savneet works for Google's Trust and Safety team in Atlanta.

Moderator: Vishrut Goel

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As a first-year Master’s student at Georgia Tech, Vishrut Goel is deeply interested in the ethical implications of technology. He sees responsible computing as inherently tied to sustainability, emphasizing the need to consider the long-term impact of our innovations. Guided by the principle of "sustainable doing" in his personal and academic life, he is eager to explore how ethical computing can shape a more responsible and equitable technological future.