Verity Harding is a globally recognised expert in AI, technology and public policy. She speaks with Lilly about her new book, AI Needs You: How We Can Change AI's Future and Save Our Own, which argues for a human-centric approach to AI rather than perpetuating what Harding calls the 'dangerous' idea that artificial intelligence's acceleration is akin to that of the 'arms race'. AI is neither inherently good or bad, and it's we human beings who get to decide how AI turns out. Drawing inspiration from the lessons of three twentieth-century tech revolutions—the space race, in vitro fertilisation, and the internet, AI Needs You is a call-to-action to empower each of us to join the conversation about AI and its possible futures.

"AI Needs You gives us hope that we, the people, can imbue AI with a deep intentionality that reflects our best values, ideals, and interests, and that serves the public good. AI will permeate our lives in unforeseeable ways, but it is clear that the shape of AI’s future—and of our own—cannot be left only to those building it. It is up to us to guide this technology away from our worst fears and toward a future that we can trust and believe in."

Photo credit: courtesy of Verity Harding