Technology Assessment Project

News

STPP influence in New York report about facial recognition technology in schools

Oct 30, 2023

The New York State Office of Information Technology Services (ITS) has outlined the ethical issues with the state’s use of facial recognition technology (FRT) in schools. The report titled “Use of Biometric Identifying Technology in Schools” found...

STPP influence in New York report about facial recognition technology in schools

News

STPP receives Carbon Neutrality Acceleration grant, examining nuclear power

Feb 16, 2023

The Graham Sustainability Institute’s Carbon Neutrality Acceleration Program (CNAP) announced $1,160,000 in funding for six new faculty research projects. CNAP is a multi-year, multimillion-dollar program created in 2020 with a $5 million gift from...

STPP receives Carbon Neutrality Acceleration grant, examining nuclear power

News

ChatGPT scrutiny brings STPP Artificial Intelligence study new relevance

Feb 9, 2023

ChatGPT, Microsoft’s artificial-intelligence (AI) algorithm, has been subject to intense scrutiny since its launch in November, becoming instantly popular because it was made free and easily accessible. Proponents are amazed at its ability to...

STPP gift to expand educational opportunities for undergraduates

News

STPP research on AI highlighted in Nature Q&A

May 3, 2022

Ford School professor Shobita Parthasarathy was highlighted in a Q&A with Nature magazine, acknowledging recent research on Large Language Models (LLMs) by the Science, Technology, and Public Policy program's Technology Assessment Project....

Publication

New language-learning algorithms risk reinforcing inequalities, social fragmentation, per U-M study

Apr 27, 2022

The use of large language models could transform many facets of modern life, including how policymakers assess public sentiment about pending legislation, how patients evaluate their medical care and how scientists could translate research findings...

New language-learning algorithms risk reinforcing inequalities, social fragmentation, per U-M study

Publication

Parthasarathy comments on regulation of biometric technologies

Jan 17, 2022

In October 2021, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) put out a request for public comment on the use and regulation of AI-enabled biometric technologies, including facial recognition. OSTP invited comment on a wide range...

News

STPP wins grant to explore Large Language Models

Jun 11, 2021

Large Language Models (LLM) — machine learning algorithms that can recognize, predict, and generate human languages on the basis of very large text-based data sets — have captured the imagination of scientists, entrepreneurs, and tech-watchers....

News

Parthasarathy: AstraZeneca vaccine crisis in Europe about public trust, not science

Mar 17, 2021 Slate

In a recent op-ed, Shobita Parthasarathy shared how the AstraZeneca vaccine crisis in Europe isn’t about science; rather it’s about public trust. “There is a long-standing perception that vaccine hesitancy is the result of public ignorance or a...

The politics of inclusive innovation in international development: Menstrual hygiene management and sanitary pads in India

News

Ford School expert tells lawmakers: Equity needs to go hand-in-hand with innovation in energy, climate

Mar 3, 2021

Pursuing energy and climate innovations grows ever more critical, but must include the involvement and participation of marginalized, vulnerable communities from the beginning. That's the message Ford School professor and director of the Science,...

Research Report

What’s in the Chatterbox? Large Language Models, Why They Matter, and What We Should Do About Them

April 20, 2022

Johanna Okerlund, Evan Klasky, Aditya Middha, Sujin Kim, Hannah Rosenfeld, Molly Kleinman, Shobita Parthasarathy

Large language models (LLMs)—machine learning algorithms that can recognize, summarize, translate, predict, and generate human languages on the basis of very large text-based datasets—are likely to provide the most convincing computer-generated...