A Spoonful of Data

Everyone is using AI, or at least talking about using it. But that's not the only hot air that we are concerned with this week, as we focus in on the rarely discussed environmental impact of this new technology. Find out how many homes could be powered for an hour, for the same energy cost as training a new language model. Discover how much water is consumed in cooling the average data centre. Warning, this might make you think twice before drafting your next prompt!

One of the hottest topics in AI has been the proliferation of deepfakes, so we're doing our best to do it justice this week, with a wide-ranging episode covering everything from Donald Trump to Taylor Swift, and from some playful uses of the technology right through to things that are far more serious.

As ever, these podcasts are for general information, not legal advice. Do get in touch if you want to discuss any of the issues in more detail!

It was an age old tale - emerging technology meets established trading bloc, they decide to pursue mutually beneficial negotiations and then, after a montage of walking hand-in-hand along beaches and late night discussions in committee, the EU AI Act was born.

Want to know more? Here's the latest episode of the Spoonful of Data podcast to tell all!

After a week away we are now back to chat about (what else?) chatbots! According to mastersofcode.com, chatbots are becoming increasingly prevalent with 73% of consumers expecting websites to offer digital assistants, and only 9% opposing the use of the technology. But as these tools become increasingly sophisticated and realistic, what are some of the risks and pitfalls that need to be watched out for?

In this week’s episode Will and Mona start to get to grips with the practicalities of safely working with AI - beginning with the important topic of impact assessments. But who is Stan, and how can his long and lonely career teach us about planning for AI impacts?

As ever, the podcast is provided for information only, and is not intended as legal advice.

What do children and terrorists have in common? Why is Will’s freezer full of ice cream? And what does any of this have to do with the current state of AI regulation in the UK? Listen to find out!

Will and Mona share their experience as data and information lawyers specialising in all things technology and AI-related. This podcast is not intended as legal advice, and represents their personal views and opinions rather than those of their firm or clients. 

A topical episode this week, picking up on the recent decision of the CNIL in relation to Amazon France's surveillance of its warehouse employees. In the post-Covid world of flexible working, an increasing number of companies have been exploring different options for keeping an eye on their workforces, so this episode aims to provide some practical guidance for anyone thinking about deploying surveillance technology in a safe and compliant way.

After introducing our theme of AI Governance last week, Will and Mona get back to basics this week with a discussion of what we mean when we talk about AI. Will thought we'd be starting the discussion in the Fifties, but he was quite a long way out!

If you are enjoying this podcast series and want to get in touch you can find us as @aspoonfulofdata on most major social channels, or you can e-mail us at [email protected]

Hello world! We're Will and Mona, two lawyers who love talking about data, technology and all the legal issues around them. In this opening episode we talk about what is generally meant by AI governance and why it matters.

If you enjoy our podcast do get in touch and let us know what else you'd like us to talk about, or any burning AI/data questions you'd like answered.

Disclaimer: we're lawyers, but this podcast is provided for general information, not as legal advice. 

Can you believe Mona has never heard of Data Protection Day? Neither could Will. We weren't supposed to have an episode out until next week, but here's a sneaky bonus prequel to introduce us and talk about this most important day in the data protection lawyers' calendar!