WHAT TYPE OF WORK DO AI FUTURIST KEYNOTE SPEAKERS DO?

What is an AI futurist keynote speaker, exactly? It bears discussion.

With artificial intelligence rapidly advancing and being integrated into more aspects of our lives, a new type of professional has emerged – the AI futurist. Think of a pro in the space as someone who studies and forecasts the potential impacts that artificial intelligence may have on the future of society, the economy, governance, ethics and more.

AI futurists analyze current AI capabilities, research trends, and the latest technological breakthroughs happening at universities, tech giants like Google and OpenAI, and AI startups. They then extrapolate from this data to predict how transformative systems may reshape different domains over various timelines – from just a few years out to even decades into the future.

For example, an AI futurist might forecast how advanced language models could automate a huge number of knowledge worker jobs, or how self-driving vehicles could restructure urban environments and transportation systems. They grapple with mind-bending scenarios like what a world with superintelligent AI would look like and whether we may someday upload our minds into digital form.

Essentially, AI futurists act as valuable Pattern analysts – connecting disparate technological and scientific data points to discern the patterns that could dramatically alter how we live and work. Their foresight allows organizations, governments and individuals to start proactively preparing for the changes coming with advanced technology capabilities.

But besides making projections, AI futurists also focus on influencing the responsible development of artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity. This includes advising on AI ethics and governance to mitigate risks like perpetuating biases, eroding privacy, enabling surveillance overreach, or in the extreme case – an advanced AI system pursuing goals misaligned with human values.

With artificial intelligence poised to be one of the most potent and disruptive technologies ever created, the vital work of AI futurists will only become more crucial in the coming years and decades. They play an important role in helping steer humanity towards maximizing the upsides of smart technology while avoiding the potential pitfalls.