Who is Kate Crawford?

Kate Crawford is an Australian composer, producer, writer, and academic whose research focuses on the social change brought about by media technologies. Crawford is also the author of the 2021 book Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence.

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Early career

Crawford completed a Ph.D. in Media Studies at the University of Sydney in 2007. Soon after, she wrote a book based on her dissertation about generational stereotypes and myths around adolescence and adulthood.

She then joined the University of New South Wales as an Associate Professor and continued to publish academic papers on various topics. These included the interplay between mobile devices and gender, the culture of technology use, and various topics related to big data.

MIT Media Lab

In January 2013, Crawford spent five years as a Visiting Professor at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Crawford was part of the Comparative Media Studies Program as a researcher and also instructed courses on topics such as the social and political implications of AI, data ethics, and critical approaches to technology.

She also collaborated with other faculty members on key issues and projects in the domain of AI ethics and governance.

Microsoft Research

Crawford then joined Microsoft Research in February 2012 as a Senior Principal Researcher. She continues to work at the company’s research lab in New York City today.

At Microsoft, Crawford has worked on data documentation projects that enable dataset creators to identify biases or hidden assumptions. One project also enabled consumers to determine whether such datasets met their requirements.

What’s more, she has been involved in research into the technical, social, and ethical implications of autonomous and semi-autonomous systems – particularly over the COVID-19 pandemic and in the realm of responsible big data research.

AI Now Institute

Crawford co-founded New York University’s AI Now Institute in early 2017 and served as a Distinguished Research Professor until June 2020.

The institute “produces diagnosis and policy research to address the concentration of power in the tech industry” and also sets the standard for “discourse-shaping work that focuses on the social consequences of AI and the industry behind it.”

AI Now was spun out as an independent organization in mid-2022.

École Normale Supérieure

Crawford then joined the Parisian university École Normale Supérieure (ENS) in February 2019. In the process, she became the Inaugural Visiting Chair of AI and Justice and now leads a collaborative international team involved in machine learning.

One of ENS’s principal partners is Fondation Abeona, a team that empowers citizens, companies, and decision-makers with collective intelligence to create a sustainable, responsible, and inclusive digital and AI transition.

Views on AI

Crawford is a leading thinker and speaker on the social, political, ethical, and environmental implications of artificial intelligence and large-scale data systems.

At times, she has also been a critic of big tech’s wider ambitions in the industry. For example, in a 2021 article titled Artificial Intelligence is Misreading Human Emotion, she argued that AI could not be trained to accurately infer human emotions from facial expressions.

In the article, she referenced a 2019 paper by neuroscientist Lisa Feldman Barrett who noted that “It is not possible to confidently infer happiness from a smile, anger from a scowl, or sadness from a frown, as much of current technology tries to do when applying what are mistakenly believed to be the scientific facts”.

Key takeaways:

Kate Crawford is a composer, producer, writer, and academic whose research focuses on the social change brought about by media technologies. Crawford is also the author of Atlas of AI, a 2021 book on the politics and planetary costs of artificial intelligence.
Crawford spent five years as a Visiting Professor at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts. There, she was involved in research and instruction on the social and political implications of AI, data ethics, and critical approaches to technology.
Crawford then joined Microsoft Research in February 2012 as a Senior Principal Researcher to continue her work on the implications of AI. She also co-founded the AI Now Institute in 2017 to analyze big tech’s role in AI development and the wider industry.

Key Highlights

Kate Crawford: Kate Crawford is a multi-talented individual known for her work as a composer, producer, writer, and academic. Her focus lies in understanding the societal impacts and changes brought about by media technologies, particularly in the realm of artificial intelligence.
Atlas of AI: Crawford is the author of the 2021 book “Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence.” The book delves into the complex interplay between AI, power dynamics, politics, and the global environmental impact of AI technologies.
Early Career and Academic Pursuits: Crawford earned her Ph.D. in Media Studies from the University of Sydney in 2007. She began her academic journey by exploring generational stereotypes and myths, particularly those surrounding adolescence and adulthood. Her research extended to various topics such as mobile devices, gender, technology culture, and big data.
MIT Media Lab: Crawford’s career led her to the prestigious MIT Media Lab, where she spent five years as a Visiting Professor. During her tenure, she contributed to the Comparative Media Studies Program, taught courses on AI’s social and political implications, data ethics, and critical technology approaches. She engaged in collaborative projects addressing AI ethics and governance.
Microsoft Research: Crawford joined Microsoft Research in February 2012 as a Senior Principal Researcher. Her work at Microsoft involved projects that focused on data documentation, uncovering biases, and examining the ethical and societal implications of autonomous systems, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
AI Now Institute: In 2017, Crawford co-founded New York University’s AI Now Institute, where she served as a Distinguished Research Professor until 2020. The institute’s mission revolves around researching and addressing the concentration of power in the tech industry. It critically examines AI’s social consequences and influences industry discourse.
École Normale Supérieure: Crawford’s expertise extended to École Normale Supérieure (ENS) in Paris, where she assumed the role of Inaugural Visiting Chair of AI and Justice. She leads an international team focused on machine learning and collaborates with partners like Fondation Abeona to promote responsible and inclusive digital and AI transitions.
Views on AI: Crawford is recognized as a prominent thinker and speaker on AI’s social, political, ethical, and environmental implications. She’s a critic of big tech’s ambitious goals, challenging common assumptions. She has pointed out the limitations of AI’s ability to accurately infer human emotions from facial expressions, emphasizing the importance of understanding scientific nuances.