Voices is a new mini-series from Humanitarian AI Today. In daily five-minute flashpods we pass the mic to humanitarian experts and technology pioneers, to hear about new projects, events, and perspectives on topics of importance to the humanitarian community.
In this flashpod, Cole Leng, an AI Researcher at Harvard and former Project Manager with Nexa AI, sits down with Humanitarian AI Today producer Brent Phillips to discuss the state-of-the-art and future trajectory of on-device machine learning.
The discussion provides researchers and staff from humanitarian organizations with important insights into where the state-of-the-art in on-device machine learning stands today and where the cutting-edge is heading. Cole examines the critical trade-offs between on-device and cloud models, analyzing their respective workflows, performance limitations, and implementation considerations to help listeners evaluate whether on-device ML applications are suitable for their specific needs. He also offers insight into choosing LLMs, the impact of new specialized hardware on performance and capability, and how current advances in ML are shaping the next generation of applications.
This episode highlights a core goal of the Humanitarian AI Today podcast: fostering dialogue between technology researchers and humanitarian practitioners. As AI and ML capabilities scale rapidly, this cross-sector engagement is crucial for mapping new technical advances to the unique operational, privacy, and resource constraints of the humanitarian field.
Substack notes: https://humanitarianaitoday.substack.com/p/cole-leng-on-the-state-and-future
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Voices is a new mini-series from Humanitarian AI Today. In daily five-minute flashpods we pass the mic to humanitarian experts and technology pioneers, to hear about new projects, events, and perspectives on topics of importance to the humanitarian community.
In this flashpod, Cole Leng, an AI Researcher at Harvard and former Project Manager with Nexa AI, sits down with Humanitarian AI Today producer Brent Phillips to discuss the state-of-the-art and future trajectory of on-device machine learning.
The discussion provides researchers and staff from humanitarian organizations with important insights into where the state-of-the-art in on-device machine learning stands today and where the cutting-edge is heading. Cole examines the critical trade-offs between on-device and cloud models, analyzing their respective workflows, performance limitations, and implementation considerations to help listeners evaluate whether on-device ML applications are suitable for their specific needs. He also offers insight into choosing LLMs, the impact of new specialized hardware on performance and capability, and how current advances in ML are shaping the next generation of applications.
This episode highlights a core goal of the Humanitarian AI Today podcast: fostering dialogue between technology researchers and humanitarian practitioners. As AI and ML capabilities scale rapidly, this cross-sector engagement is crucial for mapping new technical advances to the unique operational, privacy, and resource constraints of the humanitarian field.
Substack notes: https://humanitarianaitoday.substack.com/p/cole-leng-on-the-state-and-future
Sergio Coronado on Blind Spots in AI Safety and International Humanitarian Law
Humanitarian AI Today
45 minutes
2 months ago
Sergio Coronado on Blind Spots in AI Safety and International Humanitarian Law
This 100th Humanitarian AI Today episode focuses on blind spots in AI safety and aligning AI with International Humanitarian Law. Guest host, Andre Heller, Director of Signpost at the International Rescue Committee (IRC), speaks with Sergio Coronado, Chief Information Officer with NATO’s Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA), about important research that he is heading at the Luxembourg Tech School studying “blind spots” in AI safety at the intersection of artificial intelligence and International Humanitarian Law (IHL).
Dr. Coronado speaks in detail about his team's groundbreaking research, which tested leading AI models against codified rules of humanitarian law. The conversation delves into the chilling discovery that while models refuse obviously harmful requests about 90% of the time, they can still for example be prompted to generate malicious code for targeting civilian infrastructure like hospitals, contrary to IHL.
This dialogue moves beyond identifying the problem to explore tangible solutions, highlighting how simple interventions can dramatically improve AI's adherence to legal principles. It serves as a powerful call to action for the humanitarian and technology communities to bridge this dangerous gap and champion the development of AI that is not just powerful, but principled and fundamentally law-adherent.
Interview Notes: https://medium.com/humanitarian-ai-today/sergio-coronado-on-blind-spots-in-ai-safety-and-international-humanitarian-law-40b64590a119
Humanitarian AI Today
Voices is a new mini-series from Humanitarian AI Today. In daily five-minute flashpods we pass the mic to humanitarian experts and technology pioneers, to hear about new projects, events, and perspectives on topics of importance to the humanitarian community.
In this flashpod, Cole Leng, an AI Researcher at Harvard and former Project Manager with Nexa AI, sits down with Humanitarian AI Today producer Brent Phillips to discuss the state-of-the-art and future trajectory of on-device machine learning.
The discussion provides researchers and staff from humanitarian organizations with important insights into where the state-of-the-art in on-device machine learning stands today and where the cutting-edge is heading. Cole examines the critical trade-offs between on-device and cloud models, analyzing their respective workflows, performance limitations, and implementation considerations to help listeners evaluate whether on-device ML applications are suitable for their specific needs. He also offers insight into choosing LLMs, the impact of new specialized hardware on performance and capability, and how current advances in ML are shaping the next generation of applications.
This episode highlights a core goal of the Humanitarian AI Today podcast: fostering dialogue between technology researchers and humanitarian practitioners. As AI and ML capabilities scale rapidly, this cross-sector engagement is crucial for mapping new technical advances to the unique operational, privacy, and resource constraints of the humanitarian field.
Substack notes: https://humanitarianaitoday.substack.com/p/cole-leng-on-the-state-and-future
