International Shapeshift Salons Consider Responsible Use of AI
November 7, 2024
As of November 13, 2024, four international Shapeshift Salons, led by the Institute of Design and local partners, will have brought dozens of designers and leaders from around the world together to consider the responsible use of AI.
ID Dean Anijo Mathew and Albert Shum originated the salon series, which began in September in Auckland, New Zealand and has grown and evolved thanks to the contributions of critical partners, like Biotope, Flame University, Nikken, RUSH Digital, Steelcase, and Tata Consultancy Services, TCS Research, and Thoughtfull.
From New Zealand to New York
ID’s 2024–25 Shapeshift Series shifts the current focus on AI—from technology to real-world applications, from Silicon Valley to other parts of the world.
- Auckland, New Zealand: Democracy & Culture
- Tokyo, Japan: Mental Health & Wellbeing
- Pune, India: Upskilling & Social Impact
- New York City: Media & Information Literacy
Salons have considered how ascending technologies might solve complex social challenges locally and globally, and built action plans for using AI in persistent areas of concern:
Our first salon, in Auckland, New Zealand, asked:
Auckland, New Zealand Salon
In our first salon, we sought to understand how design can enable useful and valuable technologies for a range of democracies and cultures, including First Nations and Indigenous cultures.
Globally, we have seen that democracy is being threatened. Recently, because of COVID and the New Zealand election, questions surrounding sources of ‘authentic’ information have escalated, and New Zealanders found themselves questioning their reality.
So, will AI turbocharge or cripple democracy? Purposefully designed AI models can use unstructured datasets to help represent citizens’ views equally, with transparency. But who owns these models and what data are they trained on? Does the AI model truly represent people in an equitable way? These are just some of the questions we uncovered at our Auckland Salon.
Video courtesy of Rush Digital.
Upcoming Shapeshift Speakers
In New York and in Chicago, a range of leaders will present their insights and questions in an environment fostering dialogue and revelation, including:
New York City: November 13, 2024
- Daisy Alioto, CEO, Dirt
- Yosef Johnson, SVP, Head of VOX Creative, VOX Media
- Robin Kwong, Director of Product Management and Data Services, Yahoo News
- Jun Lee, GEMIC Consulting
- Judd Morgenstern, Partners Resolute
Chicago: May 28–31, 2025
- Avani Agrawal, Product Designer, WhatsApp (Meta)
- Timothy Bardlavens, Director of Product, Product Equity, Adobe
- Jeff Hsu, Chief Innovation Officer and Vice Chairman, Far Eastern Group
- Rohit Prasad, SVP and Head Scientist, Artificial General Intelligence, Amazon
- Moneta Ho Kushner, Director, Head of Consumer Design, WhatsApp (Meta)
- Ryan Powell, Director, Head of User Experience, Waymo
Thanks to Rush Digital and the Shapeshift New Zealand Salon team for providing the video and photos shared here.