The Robot Brains Podcast

Dean Ayanna Howard on why AI can never be truly unbiased

03.30.2022 - By Pieter AbbeelPlay

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Download on the App StoreGet it on Google Play

For Episode 13, we're joined by industry pioneer, Dean Ayanna Howard. She began working at NASA's JPL at 18-years old to help build the Mars Rover and never slowed down from there. She is a successful roboticist, entrepreneur, educator, and is the author of the recent book: Sex, Race, and Robots: How to be Human in the Age of AI.

Dr. Ayanna Howard is the current dean of The Ohio State University College of Engineering. Before joining Ohio State, she was Professor at Georgia Tech, where she was the founder and director of the Human-Automation Systems Lab (HumAnS). She led a range of projects including applying her knowledge of the Rover's SmartNav abilities to create robots that could explore remote areas of Antartica and Alaska to collect data for studying climate change. In addition to her leadership at Ohio State, she also started Zyrobotics, a non-profit dedicated to helping children that require extra development support.

The conversation spans Ayanna's childhood, her inspirations like the Bionic Woman, and her views on building a more equitable AI ecosystem for all individuals.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE ROBOT BRAINS PODCAST TODAY | Visit therobotbrains.ai and follow us on YouTube at TheRobotBrainsPodcast, Twitter @therobotbrains, and Instagram @therobotbrains. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More episodes from The Robot Brains Podcast