SAN FRANCISCO—On Tuesday, TED AI 2024 kicked off its first day at San Francisco’s Herbst Theater with a lineup of speakers that tackled AI’s impact on science, art, and society. The two-day event brought a mix of researchers, entrepreneurs, lawyers, and other experts who painted a complex picture of AI with fairly minimal hype.
The second annual conference, organized by Walter and Sam De Brouwer, marked a notable shift from last year’s broad existential debates and proclamations of AI as being “the new electricity.” Rather than sweeping predictions about, say, looming artificial general intelligence (although there was still some of that, too), speakers mostly focused on immediate challenges: battles over training data rights, proposals for hardware-based regulation, debates about human-AI relationships, and the complex dynamics of workplace adoption.
The day’s sessions covered a wide breadth: physicist Carlo Rovelli explored consciousness and time, Project CETI researcher Patricia Sharma demonstrated attempts to use AI to decode whale communication, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. outlined music industry adaptation strategies, and even a few robots made appearances.
The shift from last year’s theoretical discussions to practical concerns was particularly evident during a presentation from Ethan Mollick of the Wharton School, who tackled what he called “the productivity paradox”—the disconnect between AI’s measured impact and its perceived benefits in the workplace. Already, organizations are moving beyond the gee-whiz period after ChatGPT’s introduction and into the implications of widespread use.
Sam De Brouwer and Walter De Brouwer organized TED AI and selected the speakers.
Benj Edwards
Benj Edwards
Linguist Jessica Coon presenting at TED AI 2024.
Benj Edwards
Benj Edwards
Project CETI researcher Patricia Sharma presenting at TED AI 2024.
Benj Edwards
Linguist Jessica Coon presenting at TED AI 2024.
Benj Edwards
Project CETI researcher Patricia Sharma presenting at TED AI 2024.
Benj Edwards
founder of Enchanted Tools, and the Mirokaï robot.
Benj Edwards
Benj Edwards
Benj Edwards
Drawing from research claiming AI users complete tasks faster and more efficiently, Mollick highlighted a peculiar phenomenon: While one-third of Americans reported using AI in August of this year, managers often claim “no one’s using AI” in their organizations. Through a live demonstration using multiple AI models simultaneously, Mollick illustrated how traditional work patterns must evolve to accommodate AI’s capabilities. He also pointed to the emergence of what he calls “secret cyborgs“—employees quietly using AI tools without management’s knowledge. Regarding the future of jobs in the age of AI, he urged organizations to view AI as an opportunity for expansion rather than merely a cost-cutting measure.
