Your Undivided Attention

Suicides. Self harm. Depression and anxiety. The toll of a social media-addicted, phone-based childhood has never been more stark. It can be easy for teens, parents and schools to feel like they’re trapped by it all. But in this conversation with Tristan Harris, author and social psychologist Jonathan Haidt makes the case that the conditions that led to today’s teenage mental health crisis can be turned around – with specific, achievable actions we all can take starting today. This episode was recorded live at the San Francisco Commonwealth Club.   Correction: Tristan mentions that 40 Attorneys General have filed a lawsuit against Meta for allegedly fostering addiction among children and teens through their products. However, the actual number is 42 Attorneys General who are taking legal action against Meta. Clarification: Jonathan refers to the Wait Until 8th pledge. By signing the pledge, a parent  promises not to give their child a smartphone until at least the end of 8th grade. The pledge becomes active once at least ten other families from their child’s grade pledge the same.

Beneath the race to train and release more powerful AI models lies another race: a race by companies and nation-states to secure the hardware to make sure they win AI supremacy.  Correction: The latest available Nvidia chip is the Hopper H100 GPU, which has 80 billion transistors. Since the first commercially available chip had four transistors, the Hopper actually has 20 billion times that number. Nvidia recently announced the Blackwell, which boasts 208 billion transistors - but it won’t ship until later this year. RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Chip War: The Fight For the World’s Most Critical Technology by Chris Miller [https://www.christophermiller.net/books] To make sense of the current state of politics, economics, and technology, we must first understand the vital role played by chips Gordon Moore Biography & Facts [https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gordon-Moore] Gordon Moore, the Intel co-founder behind Moore's Law, passed away in March of 2023 AI’s most popular chipmaker Nvidia is trying to use AI to design chips faster [https://www.businessinsider.com/nvidia-uses-ai-to-produce-its-ai-chips-faster-2024-2] Nvidia's GPUs are in high demand - and the company is using AI to accelerate chip production RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES Future-proofing Democracy In the Age of AI with Audrey Tang [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/future-proofing-democracy-in-the-age-of-ai-with-audrey-tang] How Will AI Affect the 2024 Elections? with Renee DiResta and Carl Miller [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/how-will-ai-affect-the-2024-elections-with-renee-diresta-and-carl-miller] The AI ‘Race’: China vs. the US with Jeffrey Ding and Karen Hao [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/the-ai-race-china-vs-the-us-with-jeffrey-ding-and-karen-hao] Protecting Our Freedom of Thought with Nita Farahany [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/protecting-our-freedom-of-thought-with-nita-farahany] Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology [https://www.humanetech.com/]. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_ [https://twitter.com/humanetech_]

What does a functioning democracy look like in the age of artificial intelligence? Could AI even be used to help a democracy flourish? Just in time for election season, Taiwan’s Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang returns to the podcast to discuss healthy information ecosystems, resilience to cyberattacks, how to “prebunk” deepfakes, and more.  RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens by Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page [https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/testing-theories-of-american-politics-elites-interest-groups-and-average-citizens/62327F513959D0A304D4893B382B992B] This academic paper addresses tough questions for Americans: Who governs? Who really rules?  Recursive Public [https://www.recursivepublic.com/] Recursive Public is an experiment in identifying areas of consensus and disagreement among the international AI community, policymakers, and the general public on key questions of governance A Strong Democracy is a Digital Democracy [https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/15/opinion/taiwan-digital-democracy.html] Audrey Tang’s 2019 op-ed for The New York Times The Frontiers of Digital Democracy [https://www.noemamag.com/the-frontiers-of-digital-democracy/] Nathan Gardels interviews Audrey Tang in Noema RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES  Digital Democracy is Within Reach with Audrey Tang [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/23-digital-democracy-is-within-reach] The Tech We Need for 21st Century Democracy with Divya Siddarth [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/the-tech-we-need-for-21st-century-democracy-with-divya-siddarth] How Will AI Affect the 2024 Elections? with Renee DiResta and Carl Miller [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/how-will-ai-affect-the-2024-elections-with-renee-diresta-and-carl-miller] The AI Dilemma [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/the-ai-dilemma] Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology [https://www.humanetech.com/]. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_ [https://twitter.com/humanetech_]

Was it political progress, or just political theater? The recent Senate hearing with social media CEOs led to astonishing moments — including Mark Zuckerberg’s public apology to families who lost children following social media abuse. Our panel of experts, including Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, untangles the explosive hearing, and offers a look ahead, as well. How will this hearing impact protocol within these social media companies? How will it impact legislation? In short: will anything change? Clarification: Julie says that shortly after the hearing, Meta’s stock price had the biggest increase of any company in the stock market’s history. It was the biggest one-day gain by any company in Wall Street history. Correction: Frances says it takes Snap three or four minutes to take down exploitative content. In Snap's most recent transparency report, they list six minutes as the median turnaround time to remove exploitative content. RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Get Media Savvy [https://getmediasavvy.org/] Founded by Julie Scelfo, Get Media Savvy is a non-profit initiative working to establish a healthy media environment for kids and families The Power of One by Frances Haugen [https://www.amazon.com/Power-One-Strength-Whistle-Facebook/dp/031647522X?_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=ur2&linkId=ae597ebbefec8484d5915d7a6989f510&tag=franceshaugen-20] The inside story of France’s quest to bring transparency and accountability to Big Tech RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES Real Social Media Solutions, Now with Frances Haugen [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/real-social-media-solutions-now-with-frances-haugen] A Conversation with Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/42-a-conversation-with-facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen] Are the Kids Alright? [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/26-are-the-kids-alright] Social Media Victims Lawyer Up with Laura Marquez-Garrett [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/social-media-victims-lawyer-up-with-laura-marquez-garrett] Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology [https://www.humanetech.com/]. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_ [https://twitter.com/humanetech_]

Over the past year, a tsunami of apps that digitally strip the clothes off real people has hit the market. Now anyone can create fake non-consensual sexual images in just a few clicks. With cases proliferating in high schools, guest presenter Laurie Segall talks to legal scholar Mary Anne Franks about the AI-enabled rise in deep fake porn and what we can do about it.  Correction: Laurie refers to the app 'Clothes Off.' It’s actually named Clothoff. There are many clothes remover apps in this category. RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Revenge Porn: The Cyberwar Against Women [https://money.cnn.com/technology/revenge-porn/] In a five-part digital series, Laurie Segall uncovers a disturbing internet trend: the rise of revenge porn The Cult of the Constitution [https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=29075] In this provocative book, Mary Anne Franks examines the thin line between constitutional fidelity and constitutional fundamentalism Fake Explicit Taylor Swift Images Swamp Social Media [https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/26/arts/music/taylor-swift-ai-fake-images.html] Calls to protect women and crack down on the platforms and technology that spread such images have been reignited RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES  No One is Immune to AI Harms [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/no-one-is-immune-to-ai-harms-with-dr-joy-buolamwini] Esther Perel on Artificial Intimacy [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/esther-perel-on-artificial-intimacy] Social Media Victims Lawyer Up [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/social-media-victims-lawyer-up-with-laura-marquez-garrett] The AI Dilemma [https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/the-ai-dilemma] Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology [https://www.humanetech.com/]. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_ [https://twitter.com/humanetech_]