The Philosophy of Explainable Artificial Intelligence: In Conversation with Eli Laird

What a fascinating conversation I was able to have with Computer Science PhD Candidate Eli Laird! Eli and I met almost a year ago, and after learning about his expertise I knew that I wanted to have him on the podcast. Not only does he have an incredibly impressive research background and understanding of explainable AI, Eli also has an extremely ethical and well thought out view of how to approach the questions surrounding artificial intelligence.

When AI discussion began ramping up recently, I started thinking more and more about the artistic and creative implications of artificial intelligence, but also about the metaphysical implications. We have yet to understand what makes a human being conscious, self-aware, or even prove-ably existent, and yet we are already asking questions about AI’s ability to think and act similarly to human beings. Further, we as humans love to create new things, but what happens when that creation touches questions of ultimate creation.

AI, and specifically explainable AI, emphasizes for me the overlap that exists between science, philosophy, and spirituality. In order to create intelligence, how much do we need to understand our own intelligence? Alan Watts says, “Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.” Is AI ultimately an ouroboric impossibility, or will it be the external, yet self-made, creation that helps to answer questions of identity, selfhood, and meaning?

To further explore the things discussed in this blog post, check out the below resources and recommendations.

• Philosophy Resources

• Meditations on First Philosophy by Rene Descartes

• Scientific Resources

• Evaluating Proposed Fairness Models for Face Recognition Algorithms by Eli Laird

I hope you all enjoyed this conversation as much as I did! If you want more content, subscribe to Making Meaning on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and subscribe to the blog so you never miss a post! If you want to join the conversation, follow us on Instagram, Threads, Facebook, Tik Tok, and Linkedin @thecoherecollective and leave a comment sharing your thoughts on this episode. If you want more of Eli, follow them on Instagram @elilaird_.

Until next time, so much love!

XX 

Reese, Founder

The Cohere Collective