Verity Harding
Verity Harding on the Geopolitics of AI
Verity Harding
Keynote Speaker
Director of AI and Geopolitics, the University of Cambridge; Founder, Formation Advisory; Global Head of Policy, Google DeepMind (2016-2021); Author of AI Needs You: How We Can Change AI's Future and Save Our Own, an Economist Biggest Book of the Year and one of McKinsey’s best books of 2024
Verity Harding is a globally recognized authority on artificial intelligence, named one of TIME100's Most Influential People in AI. With a distinguished career spanning the heart of government, industry, and academia, including her foundational work at Google DeepMind, Verity offers unparalleled insights into the geopolitical, business, and societal implications of AI. Her work helps leaders and organizations understand and responsibly shape the future of this transformative technology.
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One of TIME100’s Most Influential People in AI, Verity Harding has worked at the cutting edge of AI for longer than most. She is Founder of the AI consultancy Formation Advisory Ltd and Director of the AI & Geopolitics Project at the University of Cambridge. Her debut book AI Needs You: How We Can Change AI’s Future and Save Our Own, was featured in the Financial Times, the Guardian, the Economist, and named as one of McKinsey’s Best Books of 2024.
Harding was Google DeepMind’s first Global Head of Public Policy from 2016, where she co-founded the company’s research and ethics unit as well as the independent multi-stakeholder organisation the Partnership on AI, and served as a member of the OECD’s Network of AI Experts. Prior to joining DeepMind, Harding was Head of Security Policy for Google in Europe, covering issues such as online extremism and encryption. Before her career in tech, Harding served as a Special Adviser to the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and recently advised the government as a member of the Cabinet Office Digital Advisory Board, a group of independent experts recruited to provide insight on digital, data, and technology to the UK Government. TIME magazine says: “Few people understand the intersection between emerging technology and democracy better than Verity Harding.”
Featured Videos
Verity Harding
Verity Harding- AI Needs You
Verity Harding
Verity Harding on Life With Machines
Verity Harding
Verity Harding on the Geopolitics of AI
Verity Harding’s Speech Topics
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AI Needs You: Bridging the Gap Between Technology and Humanity
The rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence presents both unprecedented opportunities and complex societal challenges. In her insightful book, AI Needs You, Verity Harding draws on historical examples of transformative technologies such as the Space Race and the invention of the Internet to argue that shaping a beneficial AI future requires more than just technological innovation – it demands active engagement and diverse perspectives from individuals across all sectors of society. Drawing on the core themes of her book, Harding explores how our values, politics, and ethics will all be crucial in guiding AI development and deployment.
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Beyond the AI Arms Race: Fostering Global Cooperation in Artificial Intelligence
In an era defined by geopolitical instability, discussions surrounding Artificial Intelligence (AI) are increasingly dominated by notions of national competition and military advantage. Verity Harding, Director of the AI & Geopolitics Project at the Bennett School for Public Policy, University of Cambridge, offers a crucial counter-narrative, drawing on her deep expertise to illuminate the overlooked potential for global collaboration in shaping AI’s trajectory. Harding unpacks the dangers of framing AI as a zero-sum game, highlighting how the intense focus on an “AI arms race” overshadows opportunities for multi-stakeholder engagement and shared progress.
Featured News
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Financial Times -
Time Verity Harding: The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2023
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Forbes AI holds up a mirror to us: Cambridge University’s Verity Harding
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WIRED It’s Time to Move Past AI Nationalism
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Financial Times What the cold war space race can teach us on AI
Works by Verity Harding
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Verity Harding
AI Needs You: How We Can Change AI’s Future and Save Our Own
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Verity Harding Topics & Types
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