AUSTIN (KXAN) — An assistant professor at the University of Texas Austin will join a panel of experts poised to “explore the future of artificial intelligence on society,” according to a UT release Wednesday.
Samantha Shorey, a communication studies assistant professor with UT’s Moody College of Communications, was appointed to the AI100 study panel. The panel brings together AI experts from around the globe with specialties in computer science, sociology, ethics and economics, among other areas.
The panel is administered by the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, per the release. It is tasked with creating a report every five years and “exploring the state of artificial intelligence and its influences on society,” the release added.
“This is an incredible honor to be working alongside so many scholars who I have read and looked to their research for so long,” Shorey said in the release. “The folks that are on the committee are the kinds of people I would be honored to be on a call with for 10 minutes, and now I get to work alongside them. They are titans in their field.”
She was selected to join the panel after winning an AI100 essay competition. The competition had applicants comment on previously compiled reports and share their thoughts on the future of AI.
She was one of more than 50 applicants from 18 countries to submit for the panel.
Shorey’s essay centered on the integration of AI into the workplace and the impacts on essential workers due to artificial intelligence.
Peter Stone, a computer science professor at UT who served as chair of the first AI100 study panel, said Shorey’s points raised are critical to weigh on and address in the team’s next report. That upcoming report is slated to be written in 2026.
The topic for that 2026 report is unknown at this time. The 2016 report centered on the effects of AI on urban centers, including transportation, healthcare, education and public safety. The 2021 report focused on risks and dangers affiliated with AI, the release said.
