Artificial intelligence is one of the most transformative technologies of our time, with the potential to revolutionize every aspect of our lives. From the mundane to the profound, AI is already having a significant impact on the human experience. In the spirit of TED and Ideas Worth Sharing, TEDxPaloAlto aims to explore different aspects of AI and AI-related topics.
Schedule:
February 18, 2024:
9:00 am Doors open, coffee and networking
9:30 am First session begins
11:00 am Brunch and networking
11:45 am Second session begins
1:15 pm Closing
Our sessions are wonderfully dynamic, and we might gracefully extend or shorten our time together at each session but will stay within the overall timeframe. Embrace the ebb and flow as we navigate the delightful unpredictability of our dynamic show together.
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Speaker: Scott Aaronson
Scott Aaronson is Schlumberger Chair of Computer Science at the University of Texas at Austin, and founding director of its Quantum Information Center, currently on leave at OpenAI to work on theoretical foundations of AI safety. He received his bachelor's from Cornell University and his PhD from UC Berkeley. Before coming to UT Austin, he spent nine years as a professor in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT. Aaronson's research in theoretical computer science has focused mainly on the capabilities and limits of quantum computers. His first book, Quantum Computing Since Democritus, was published in 2013 by Cambridge University Press. He received the National Science Foundation’s Alan T. Waterman Award, the United States PECASE Award, the Tomassoni-Chisesi Prize in Physics, and the ACM Prize in Computing, and is a Fellow of the ACM and the AAAS.
Speaker: Guy Kawasaki
Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist of Canva and the creator of Guy Kawasaki’s Remarkable People podcast. He is an executive fellow of the Haas School of Business (UC Berkeley), and adjunct professor of the University of New South Wales. He was the chief evangelist of Apple and a trustee of the Wikimedia Foundation. He has written Think Remarkable, Wise Guy, The Art of the Start 2.0, The Art of Social Media, Enchantment, and eleven other books. Kawasaki has a BA from Stanford University, an MBA from UCLA, and an honorary doctorate from Babson College.
Speaker: Irena Smith
Irena Smith is a former Stanford admissions officer turned college counselor and acclaimed author. After emigrating from the Soviet Union at age nine and overcoming her conviction that she would never learn English, she earned a PhD in Comparative Literature and taught literature and composition at UCLA and Stanford before transitioning to admissions counseling and writing. Her memoir, "The Golden Ticket: A Life in College Admissions Essays," recently won the 2023 Best Book Award for creative nonfiction. Forbes lauds it as "captivating and smart," an antidote to conventional thinking about elite college admissions.
Speaker: Judith Finell
Renowned musicologist Judith Finell presides over Judith Finell MusicServices Inc. in New York and Los Angeles, a music consultancy established 25 years ago. A leading expert witness in many high-profile copyright disputes, she has shaped pivotal legal outcomes, including in the landmark "Blurred Lines" trial.
Her firm advises industry giants including Disney, Apple, Netflix, Amazon, and Sony Pictures on music integration in films, media, TV, and commercials. Standing at the intersection of music, law, and technology, she was the 2018 UCLA School of Music commencement speaker and featured in NBC/Universal's documentary "The Universality of Music." At UCLA, Finell co-teaches the sole Forensic Musicology course nationwide and is a frequent guest speaker at law schools including Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, and international legal forums.
Speaker: Andy Gass
Partner at Latham & Watkins
Andy has been writing and speaking on technological innovation and intellectual property issues for more than 20 years. He is currently a litigator at the law firm Latham & Watkins, where he represents startups and technology companies in high-stakes disputes over how the law deals with novel digital tools. And he teaches a variety of courses—currently one titled “Copyright, Competition & Technology”—at the UC Berkeley Law School, which boasts the top-ranked IP law program in the country.
Andy graduated from Yale College and Berkeley Law, and served as a law clerk to the late Stephen Williams on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He currently sits on the Board of the Berkeley Art Museum/Pacific Film Archive, and lives in Healdsburg, California.
Speaker: Mike Dougherty
Mike Dougherty is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Remix AI, the first social app for AI creation. He has over 20 years of experience with consumer technology and digital media.
Prior to Remix AI, he was CEO and co-founder of Jelli (acquired by iHeartMedia), a social audio and advertising platform reaching hundreds of millions of people. Before this he was the head of business development and strategy at Tellme, a speech recognition platform (acquired by Microsoft), and Loudeye, a global digital music platform (acquired by Nokia). Mike was also COO/CFO of Outdoorsy, an online marketplace for outdoor experiences. Dougherty is named on 9 issued US technology patents and is an avid collector of generative and AI digital art.
Dougherty has appeared on CNBC’s Squawk Box and NBC Press:Here, and at TEDxSF, NAB, CES, Digital Hollywood, Intel’s CEO Summit, The Paley Center, RAIN, Radio Ink’s Convergence, NARM, and he was named a Power Player by All Access.
Speaker: Leila Takayama
Dr. Leila Takayama is a Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) specialist in the psychology of people's interactions with robotic products and services. She is the VP of Design and HRI at Robust.AI. She has contributed to over a dozen robotic products that have shipped, including drones in the air; industrial, service, and consumer robots on the ground; and uncrewed robotic systems in the ocean.
Before joining Robust.AI, she was a tenured associate professor at University of California, Santa Cruz; researcher at GoogleX; and scientist at Willow Garage. She completed her PhD at Stanford University and Bachelors degrees at UC Berkeley. Her work has been recognized by the IEEE Robotics & Automation Society Early Career Award, MIT Tech Review TR35, Fast Company, and World Economic Forum.
Speaker: Maja Matarić
Maja Matarić is a Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, Neuroscience, and Pediatrics at the University of Southern California and Principal Scientist at Google DeepMind. Her PhD is from MIT. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, fellow of AAAS, IEEE, AAAI, and ACM, recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics & Engineering Mentoring, Anita Borg Institute Women of Vision, NSF Career, MIT TR35 Innovation, and IEEE RAS Early Career Awards, and authored "The Robotics Primer" (MIT Press). A pioneer of socially assistive robotics, her research is developing human-machine interaction methods for personalized support for users with challenges, including autism, stroke, dementia, anxiety, and other major health and wellness challenges. She is also co-founder of Embodied, Inc.
Speaker: Oded Gal
Oded Gal is an investor, advisor, and board member of startups building the future of work. He is an Independent Board Member for Neat, an LP and Advisor for R-Squared Ventures, and an Advisor for Flexspace. Oded was the Chief Product Officer at Zoom for seven years, helming product development and UI design from video conferencing software to a broad-based communications platform including conference room system, phone system, chat, contact center, and developer and partner ecosystems. Prior to Zoom, Oded held product leadership roles at BlueJeans and Cisco and led business development for Radvision. Oded has a BSc in Electrical Engineering from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology.
Speaker: Vilas Dhar
Vilas Dhar is an artificial intelligence policy expert, human rights advocate, and a champion for equity in a tech-enabled world. He has held a lifelong commitment to creating human-centered institutions, and his experiences as a lawyer, technologist, investor, and philanthropist shape his approach to enabling communities to build solutions to the world’s most difficult challenges: climate and disaster impacts, last mile health delivery, and digital autonomy and dignity. He has been appointed to the United Nations High-Level Advisory Body on AI and serves as the President of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, where he oversees one of the largest philanthropic campaigns to build a thriving AI enabled future.
MC: Adam Dorsay
Dr. Adam Dorsay is a licensed psychologist and executive coach in Silicon Valley where he serves high-achieving adults (including professionals, executives, entrepreneurs, and professional athletes). Adam is the host SuperPsyched, an award-winning podcast, and he’s given two highly-regarded TEDx Talks: one about men and their emotions and the other about friendship in adulthood.
Beyond his private practice, Adam is a resiliency expert who co-created an international program for Facebook’s Online Safety employees for several years. He now serves as the resiliency consultant to DigitalOcean and has frequent requests from the media for interviews and corporations to provide keynotes and training.
Le Jazz Hot
Le Jazz Hot (the Quartet/Trio of the Hot Club of San Francisco) is an ensemble of accomplished and versatile musicians celebrating the music of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli’s pioneering Hot Club de France. The ensemble borrows the all-string instrumentation of violin, bass and guitars from the original Hot Club, but breathes new life into the music with innovative arrangements of classic tunes and original compositions from the group’s superb lead guitarist Paul Mehling.
GUNHILD CARLING
Sweden’s Queen of Swing
SINGER | MUSICIAN | DANCER | ENTERTAINER
Swedish musical sensation Gunhild Carling is an internationally acclaimed superstar whose show is a can’t-miss event! Whether she’s singing favorite swinging jazz standards, playing one of the 11 many instruments (trumpet, trombone, harmonica, oboe, harp, flute, recorder, or jazz bagpipe!) or juggling and tap dancing, Gunhild’s sublime showmanship shines. And just wait for the finale – spoiler alert – she plays three trumpets at once!