Humans and Machines

The intersection of computers and humans is at the vortex of innovation, discovery, and is pushing the boundaries of what we understand and can accomplish with greater agility and speed. How do we combine the power of the computer with the power of the human brain to succeed in a complex and interconnected maze of facts to drive personal and economic growth? Robert Schukai, Drake Baer, Abhinav Gupta, Rose Eveleth

A look at where we are in terms of the state of autonomy in our everyday lives, what the future holds, and how to know what jobs could soon be turned over to automation. Speakers: Mary "Missy" Cummings, Megan Garber

Cities today are growing at unprecedented rates, and so is demand for transportation. At the same time attitudes toward cars are changing, leaving people worldwide in search of new modes of transport that better serve their mobility needs. Assaf Biderman, co-inventor of the award winning Copenhagen Wheel and founder of Superpedestrian will explore with us how a simple idea can change the way we move around. The wheel, which can be installed on almost any bicycles, multiplies the rider’s power by up to 5 times. It makes cycling over large distances and uphill a breeze, offering a competitive alternative to cars for commuters. Through a smart phone, users can customize the wheel, receive information about their physical activity, and connect with other riders to share information about road conditions, safer cycling routes, and much more.. The Copenhagen Wheel exemplifies a broader technological transformation has been taking place. We're seeing digital devices becoming an integral part of everyday objects and recombining with the built environment. This so-called embedded intelligence in the things that surround us opens the door to completely rethink how we address the problems faced by today's cities. Assaf Biderman is the speaker here.

Data rates are growing some 40% each year, and the sheer amount of data has outstripped common analytics and staffing levels — creating a serious data analysis gap. To move forward, organizations must transform big data into smart data, which means being able to analyze data on a massive scale and quickly use it to provide deeper insights, create new products, and differentiate services. New data science is built on velocity (fast moving data), variety (different kinds of data), and volume (large amounts of data). This panel will explore what kinds of approaches and analytic tools are now being used and to what end. It will also examine the opportunities, risks, and likely developments the near future holds as analysis helps us transform the commodities of big data into valuable smart data. Bill Thoet, Drake Baer, Don Tapscott, Guruduth Banavar, Robert Schukai

Featuring: Danny Hillis, Alexis Madrigal

From Toyota's big bet on hydrogen fuel cell technology to the development of cars that drive themselves, connected vehicles and even robots, the world's largest automaker is delivering the future of mobility. Andrew Ross Sorkin and Toyota's Osamu Nagata will discuss what's in the works now and how we'll be getting around tomorrow. Osamu Nagata, Andrew Ross Sorkin

Sebastian Thrun, perhaps best known for his work on self-driving cars, Google X, and Google Glass, also leads Udacity, an education platform whose mission it is to democratize higher education for students and professionals alike. He discusses the breadth of his work with the director of the automation science research lab and distinguished professor of New Media Lab at UC Berkeley, Ken Goldberg, also known for his own art and filmography. What do these two have in common? besides being uncommonly hip, a passion for creative problem solving, invention, and thinking on the edge. Sebastian Thrun, Ken Goldberg

As the landscape of high tech is increasingly modernized through applications of robotics from operating theaters to rescue missions, smarter phones that manage our lives, and flying technologies that put cameras (and weapons) in the air (if not everywhere) how will the balance of law, ethics, and relationships between humans and machines change us? Speakers: Mary "Missy" Cummings, Ryan Calo, Ken Goldberg, David Kirkpatrick, Alexander Reben

Really a look at where robotics will take us in surgery, both from a standpoint of precision, and opportunity, but also jobs, career paths for doctors, and liability issues (what happens if a robot fails?) Speakers: Eric Genden, Umamaheswar Duvvuri, Rose Eveleth

High-functioning robots, self-driving vehicles, artificial intelligence, and many other astonishing technologies have — in the past few years — moved from science fiction into the mainstream economy. What will happen next? And what will these advances mean for job prospects, wages, and well-being, both in the US and around the world? MIT’s Andrew McAfee, coauthor of the 2014 bestseller "The Second Machine Age", will take on these questions. Amid this bounty will also be wrenching change. Professions of all kinds — from lawyers to truck drivers — will be forever upended. Companies will be forced to transform or die. Recent economic indicators reflect this shift: Fewer people are working and wages are falling even as productivity and profits soar. Andrew McAfee