Good Systems would like to thank Sherri Greenberg (LBJ School of Public Affairs) for her leadership as chair of the Good Systems Executive Team in 2023 – 24. Greenberg will continue to serve on the Executive Team. The grand challenge now welcomes Luis Sentis (Cockrell School of Engineering) as chair for 2024 – 25.
Read letters from Greenberg and Sentis as they reflect on the last year and look ahead.
From our outgoing chair, Sherri Greenberg
Serving as chair of Good Systems has been an honor at an exciting and pivotal time. I have had the privilege of working with exceptional colleagues and tremendous staff from across the UT campus. In addition to the ongoing Good Systems work, President Hartzell declared 2024 the Year of AI at UT Austin, and the schedule has been very full.
Good Systems researchers closed in on the halfway point of our six-year core research projects, which explore dimensions of ethical and responsible AI in six domains: racial equity, privacy and surveillance, information integrity, smart cities, living and working with robots, and smart tools and the future of work. In a top priority area, we increased our engagement with local, state and federal policymakers and disseminated our research broadly through participation in numerous panels, conferences and events. We strengthened existing partnerships in the U.S. and globally and initiated new partnerships with peer institutions across the country. We also lent our expertise to help expand the AI education landscape at UT.
In our engagement with policymakers, last year’s chair, Sharon Strover, and I had the opportunity to work with the Austin City Council and staff on the city’s resolution to establish standards for the city’s use of AI technologies. Good Systems researchers also met with members of the Texas Legislature and were invited to speak at sessions and convenings, and Matt Lease provided expert testimony for the Texas House Committee on AI & Emerging Technologies. As part of the Year of AI, Craig Watkins and Samantha Shorey traveled to Washington, D.C. with President Hartzell to meet with members of Texas’ congressional delegation. At the international level, we hosted a meeting with a delegation of the European Union Parliament to showcase research from the “Smart Hand Tools: Building the Future of Work with Ethical AI” project team. We look forward to continuing to work with policymakers on important AI ethical and regulatory issues throughout the 2024 – 25 school year and beyond.
More broadly, we built new connections and shared research findings at venues with large, diverse audiences. For the first time, Good Systems faculty and researchers participated in the Texas Tribune Festival, and we increased our presence at SXSW with Good Systems faculty participation in a fireside chat, two workshops and two panels. In our own signature event, the Good Systems Annual Symposium, we showcased innovative technologies and tools from the six core projects and hosted thought-provoking talks and panels over two days in March, with record attendance of more than 300 faculty, students, and public, private and nonprofit sector professionals.
We’ve been thrilled to have the continued opportunity to partner with friends on campus to co-host events, including the Visual Arts Center, the Center for Analytics and Transformative Technologies, the RGK Center, Texas Robotics, Texas Career Engagement, the Humanities Institute, and the IC2 Institute. Beyond the Forty Acres, we launched a community of practice with peer institutions with aligned ethical AI research programs and look forward to working together to co-author publications and pursue research opportunities.
Beyond research, Good Systems and the College of Natural Sciences partnered to develop and launch an AI literacy course, “The Essentials of AI for Life and Society,” which enrolled 130 undergraduates and over 500 auditors. The course, which introduced foundational AI concepts and explored the ethical and societal impacts of AI technologies, has since been expanded into a three-credit offering taught by Peter Stone this fall.
Later this fall, the Year of AI at UT Austin will conclude with a campus-wide festival, which we look forward to participating in. Good Systems’ work, however, will continue on through the rest of 2024 and beyond, and I am delighted and privileged to be a part of it. Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard!
From our incoming chair, Luis Sentis
As I step into the role of Good Systems chair, I am filled with a strong sense of responsibility, a touch of nervousness and great excitement about the opportunities that lie ahead. Our work has never been more vital, as we confront the challenges of information manipulation, pervasive access to personal data, biases within AI systems, increasing integration of AI and automation in our cities and industries, and uncertainty surrounding the future of labor. Together, we have the ability to shape the future in meaningful ways. I’d like to take this moment to outline some key priorities for the coming year as we build on our strengths and move toward our shared goals.
Accelerating Cross-Cutting Themes
One of my top priorities will be to support the development of our cross-cutting themes: AI Safety and Alignment, Work at the Human-AI Frontier, and Knowledge, Generative AI and Power. Last year we created these cross-cutting themes and appointed research leads for each. In the coming year, we will accelerate our efforts, strengthening cross-project collaboration, pursuing funding opportunities and deepening our interdisciplinary focus to ensure our work transcends individual fields and makes a meaningful impact for the greater societal good.
Collaborative Research and Strategic Synergies
In the coming year, I aim to deepen academic collaboration among our project teams, particularly in producing high-impact research. Our cross-disciplinary collaborations have already enhanced both the quality and quantity of our publications. We will leverage this momentum to publish in top-tier venues and disseminate our research through articles, presentations, media appearances, panels and other outlets on both national and international stages. Bolstered by President Hartzell’s declaration of 2024 as the Year of AI, we will seek to increase our collaboration with other AI initiatives across the Forty Acres to identify synergies and amplify the impact of our collective AI research. This partnership will be crucial as we develop our roadmap beyond 2027, ensuring the sustainability of Good Systems and its mission.
Engaging with Policy and Industry
A key strategic objective will be to continue to enhance our presence and influence on the national stage. By engaging with policymakers, trade unions, labor associations and other industrial organizations, we can better grasp the concerns of the government and broader public, enabling us to conduct purposeful sociotechnical research that ensures technology remains inclusive for all as we navigate this rapidly evolving technological landscape. Strengthening these relationships will not only broaden our networks but also amplify our voice in critical policy discussions.
Local and International Collaborations
I am committed to deepening our engagement with underrepresented communities, community educational efforts and other public entities while also reinforcing our ties with global ethical initiatives like UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems Hub and Responsible AI UK, particularly in the realm of responsible AI and labor dynamics. These efforts will enable us to envision future professional landscapes, with a focus on job creation, informed by insights from sociotechnical demonstrations.
Embracing Innovation
As we move forward, it is essential that we further embrace the startup ecosystem and cultivate a commitment to building systems that transcend narrow interests. Securing federally funded opportunities for innovation, such as through the CHIPS Act and the Texas Space Commission, will be central to this strategy. Active participation in local technology events, international forums, leadership gatherings and connections with high-tech ecosystems will enrich our perspective and deepen our understanding of both sides of the sociotechnical landscape.
Together, we have an incredible opportunity to lead the way in AI research, policy, ethics and innovation. I am confident that with our combined expertise and dedication, we will achieve great things in the year ahead.
Thank you for your continued commitment and support!
Sherri R. Greenberg is a professor of practice and fellow of the Max Sherman Chair in state and local government at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, as well as the school’s assistant dean for state and local government engagement. She is also a professor of practice at the Steve Hicks School of Social Work. From 1991 to 2001, Greenberg was a representative in the Texas House, where she chaired the House Pensions and Investments Committee and the Select Committee on Teacher Health Insurance and served on the House Appropriations, Economic Development, Elections, and Science and Technology Committees. Before coming to UT, Greenberg was also the City of Austin capital finance manager, a public finance officer at Standard & Poor’s and senior advisor to Austin mayor Steve Adler. She earned a B.A. in government from The University of Texas at Austin and an M.S. in public administration and policy from the London School of Economics.
Luis Sentis is a professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics in the Cockrell School of Engineering. He leads the Human Centered Robotics Laboratory, a laboratory focusing on control, task and motion planning, human factors, and experimentation with humanoid robots, mobile manipulation robots, exoskeletons and autonomous systems. He is also a founding member of the UT Robotics Portfolio Program and the UT Ethics of AI Portfolio Program. He received his Ph.D. and M.S. in electrical engineering from Stanford University, where he was a La Caixa Foundation Fellow, and a B.S. in telecommunications and electronics engineering from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (Spain).