Good Systems has awarded funding to five projects that investigate the ethical implications of AI technologies in society in the areas of racial justice, surveillance and privacy, smart cities, and community-robot interaction.

A University of Texas at Austin assistant professor has been recognized with a significant academic honor as she was named this month to a panel of experts who will explore the future of artificial intelligence on society.

Sharon Strover, Philip G. Warner Regents Professor in Communication, passes her Good Systems Chair position to Sherri Greenberg, LBJ School Assistant Dean for State and Local Government Engagement and Professor of Practice at LBJ School and Steve Hicks School of Social Work.

The collaboration between the City of Austin and Planet Texas 2050 has been crucial to ensuring the city’s leaders are basing their climate resilience action on research informed by the needs of Austin’s most vulnerable communities.

As the 2023-24 academic year begins, Good Systems Executive Team members and close collaborators share their thoughts on the most exciting developments in AI for social good as well as the most pressing ethical concerns facing society today.

Following the hottest month ever recorded for the planet, places like Texas have yet to catch a break from scorching temperatures. With the extreme climb on thermometers also come opportunities to study and understand the effects of increasing heat for people and the planet—as well as what we might be able to do about it.

The election of Professor Sherri Greenberg to chair of Good Systems couldn’t be more timely. UT Austin’s ethical AI grand challenge is ready to start shaping and informing public policy at the intersection of technology and society. And there are few as well equipped as Greenberg to lead this initiative.

Boston Dynamics is known for its viral videos where its autonomous robots dance, tackle obstacle courses or decorate for the holidays. There are even blooper reels that show how much work is required to make the robots perform even the simplest of tasks.

Since the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022, artificial intelligence, or AI, usage has skyrocketed. As a new academic year rapidly approaches for The University of Texas at Austin, faculty are working to balance fostering a learning environment with AI while preventing cheating among college students.

The Department of Computer Science and the Good Systems program present a one semester-credit-hour course titled “Essentials of AI for Life and Society.”