AI is remodeling the enterprise world, enabling corporations to boost productiveness, streamline operations, and ship customized buyer experiences. At Microsoft, our mission is to empower each particular person and each group on the planet to realize extra, and which means main this transformation with revolutionary AI options constructed responsibly that drive actual influence in your group.
Past the instruments that empower companies to form their future with AI in a quickly evolving market, our leaders at Microsoft are shaping our personal group with this know-how. On this sequence, FYAI, we’ll spotlight leaders from round Microsoft which can be driving forces in our AI technique for his or her distinctive perspective on our AI transformation; to your AI data, if you’ll.
Insights from Sarah Chicken, Chief Product Officer (CPO) of Accountable AI
On this version, we hear from Sarah Chicken, Microsoft’s Chief Product Officer (CPO) of Accountable AI, forward of her look at South by Southwest (SXSW) the place she’ll be discussing the evolving security practices for generative AI.
On this Q&A session, Sarah shares her insights on varied facets of accountable AI, together with her journey and dedication to accountable AI, her function as Chief Product Officer, the significance of integrating accountable AI early within the improvement course of, and her insights on future AI breakthroughs and their security implications.
Let’s discover Sarah Chicken’s experiences and views on the evolving panorama of AI and uncover how Microsoft is constructing reliable AI programs.
FYAI: Accountable AI with Sarah Chicken
Who influenced you to pursue a profession in accountable AI?
“For me, it’s much less about who influenced me to pursue this profession and extra about who I’m serving to each day via my work. AI is likely one of the most empowering applied sciences now we have, however we will’t unlock its full potential with out fixing for accountable AI. That’s what makes this work so vital—it’s about making certain AI is secure and helpful for everybody. And to do this, now we have to work throughout boundaries. It jogs my memory of my grad faculty days—accountable AI is the last word group undertaking, bringing collectively know-how, society, and regulation to sort out these complicated challenges in a significant approach.”
What does the function of chief product officer, accountable AI, truly imply? Inform us what your day-to-day seems like.
“No two days are the identical, and that’s what retains me energized. On the core, my workforce is concentrated on three key issues: recognizing new dangers, determining easy methods to sort out them—particularly once they’re issues we’ve by no means seen earlier than—and ensuring our options are scalable so others can apply them simply. That framework guides us, however the actuality is, AI is evolving quick. So an enormous a part of our work is staying nimble—triaging points in real-time, making use of what we be taught in observe, and adapting rapidly to check and deploy new programs. It’s a mixture of technique and problem-solving, which is what makes it thrilling.”
The place are you noticing gaps in corporations’ implementation of AI security practices?
“It’s been actually inspiring to see how way more mature clients are getting with their accountable AI roadmaps and deployment. There’s actual progress occurring. That mentioned, individuals are nonetheless studying, and the extent of maturity varies throughout industries—some are additional alongside than others. If there’s one factor I may shout from the rooftops, it’s that accountable AI can’t be an afterthought. It must be constructed into the complete improvement course of from the beginning, not simply bolted on on the finish. It’s about placing all of the items collectively to create a whole, accountable AI lifecycle.”
When do you assume the subsequent AI breakthrough goes to occur and what does that imply for safeguards?
“As an engineer, I’m centered on problem-solving moderately than predicting when the subsequent huge breakthrough will occur. However I’ll say—it’s an thrilling journey, particularly with the tempo of innovation. And whereas we nonetheless want one other main leap earlier than we will speak concerning the actuality of what’s subsequent, what’s actually thrilling about this area is that the breakthrough isn’t simply the know-how itself—it’s how we apply it. The actual magic occurs on the intersection of tech and other people, and determining easy methods to bridge that responsibly is what makes this work so fascinating.”
Why do you are feeling security and innovation go hand in hand?
“A purpose of ours as an organization is to assist individuals do extra with AI. We’re consistently pushing the boundaries of what’s doable and doing so in a secure, trusted approach. As I’ve mentioned, security is not only a ‘good to have’ bolted on on the finish of a undertaking, however a important piece of creating high-quality AI programs. I take a look at questions of safety as a measure of high quality – is your AI performing as properly correctly? We are able to’t innovate and drive significant progress if we don’t remedy for this.”
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Be taught extra about Microsoft’s accountable AI work
At Microsoft, we’re dedicated to the accountable development and use of AI. Our method is guided by rules that guarantee AI improvement maximizes advantages and minimizes potential harms. We incorporate accountable AI practices from the start by coaching our staff to judge dangers and collaborating with specialists to evaluate and take a look at applied sciences.
We imagine that advancing secure, safe, and reliable AI requires a mixture of business commitments, insurance policies, and international governance. Accountable AI is an ongoing journey that entails steady studying and collaboration.
Sarah Chicken is on the forefront of making certain that AI applied sciences are developed and deployed responsibly, and her workforce is devoted to constructing instruments that take a look at AI programs rigorously to make sure they work as supposed and are secure, inclusive, and helpful for everybody. As she highlights, by integrating accountable AI practices from the beginning, we will unlock the complete potential of AI whereas sustaining the very best requirements of security and innovation.
