Partnership on AI's Terah Lyons talks ethics washing, moonshots, and power

Formed in September 2016 by a coalition of the largest tech companies in AI -- Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google, IBM, and Microsoft -- it is a nonprofit organization that advises corporations and governments on AI policy and seeks to answer big questions about the future, like how AI will influence the economy and society and how best to make safety-critical or transparent AI systems. Of the more than 100 notable organizations active on five continents that compose the Partnership, more than half are human rights groups like Amnesty International, Future of Life Institute, and GLAAD. They sit alongside some of the world's most influential tech companies, think tanks, and other organizations. The Partnership will mark its third year with an annual gathering of member organizations in London in September. But if you haven't heard of Partnership on AI, that's understandable, because the group hasn't done much since launch, or at least not as much as you might expect from such a powerful cohort. In April, the organization released analysis warning that AI-driven risk assessment tools are not yet ready to replace cash bail systems and calling for a suspension of their use.