Dorothea Baur - the ethics crusader

@dorotheabaur.bsky.social

Straight Talk and Strategic Clarity on AI Ethics & Sustainability | Speaker · Consultant · Writer - dorotheabaur.ch Ideal for people who appreciate both humor and ethical dilemmas, and can handle an occasional existential crisis.

In Seattle, where Amazon and Microsoft have laid off thousands of tech workers, (the very same?) tech workers are now protesting against new data centers that would consume ca. 1/3 of the city's daily electricity demand. Now a moratorium is in the pipeline. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

Seattle poised to ban new datacenters in blow to big tech hub

Measure in Amazon and Microsoft’s backyard expected to succeed next week as backlash grows amid AI boom

theguardian.com

"But won't my protest against data centers block the AI that cures cancer?" Don't worry; the chance is slim. That has to do with the difference between the generative AI driving the building boom and the specialized systems that actually detect cancer. dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...

Data Centers: Hungry. Thirsty. And not welcome.

Data centres consume water, electricity and land – yet give almost nothing back to local communities. Why citizens are right to protest.

dorotheabaur.ch

While the parents protest against the construction of data centres at local council meetings, their children are doing their homework using AI, only to end up unemployed later on. They learn this from the speaker at their graduation ceremony. My rant on data centers. dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...

Data Centers: Hungry. Thirsty. And not welcome.

Data centres consume water, electricity and land – yet give almost nothing back to local communities. Why citizens are right to protest.

dorotheabaur.ch

Während die Eltern an Gemeindeversammlungen gegen den Bau von Datenzentren protestieren, schreiben die Kinder an der Uni ihre Seminararbeiten mit KI, nur um später arbeitslos zu sein. Das erfahren sie vom Redner an ihrer Abschlussfeier. Kein Wunder buhen sie ihn aus. dorotheabaur.ch/texte-und-me...

Datenzentren: Hungrig. Durstig. Nicht willkommen.

Datenzentren beanspruchen Wasser, Strom und Land – und geben den Gemeinden fast nichts zurück. Warum Anwohner zu Recht protestieren.

dorotheabaur.ch

"AI does not necessitate imperial conquest, nor could broad-based benefit from the technology ever emerge from such a foundation". Before the pivot to extremely resource-intensive AI models, small, specialized systems solved hard problems. @karenhao.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/technology/c...

The Elon Musk v Sam Altman battle is a distraction | Karen Hao

Fixating on questions of whether Altman is untrustworthy, or whether Musk is even less so distracts from a far deeper problem with AI

theguardian.com

"Many of the big companies making the models are also the ones that are selling you the compute. It makes sense for them to sell you the largest model, because then you need the most compute." Great interview with @sashamtl.bsky.social on AI & sustainability www.wired.com/story/what-i...

What It Will Take to Make AI Sustainable

Researcher Sasha Luccioni argues we need better emissions data and a better sense of how people are using AI in the first place.

wired.com

I've published some thoughts on LinkedIn: Anyone who writes with fluency or precision is suspected of using AI. We're engaging in a witch hunt where those accused bear the burden of proof, and the tools used to “convict” are as unreliable as any other polygraph. www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

#genai #criticalthinking #digitalliteracy | Dr. Dorothea Baur | 94 comments

A couple of weeks ago a renowned publisher just pulled a horror novel because an algorithm flagged it as 78% likely AI-generated. The author denies having used AI herself but acknowledges that someone...

linkedin.com

There's a "curious affinity between... nihilism and AI enthusiasm: If truth is irrelevant anyway, then LLMs – which essentially produce plausible statements without reference to truth (critics call it bullshit) – are not a threat but confirmation" dorotheabaur.ch/en/texts-and...

Hallucinated References: Five Excuses for Academic Misconduct

When I proposed rejecting papers with hallucinated references, the support was overwhelming. But the critical voices revealed five argument patterns: from AI hype through TINA rhetoric to nihilism.

dorotheabaur.ch

Excellent piece on what it means when we let agents take over: "the beginning of a world in which people are less in the loop and more on call, less empowered by the technology and more enslaved by its tempo" Highly recommended read! www.noemamag.com/ai-agents-ar...

AI Agents Are Recruiting Humans To Observe The Offline World | NOEMA

Agents need us — as sensors, as verifiers, as bearers of liability — in ways we have barely begun to account for.

noemamag.com

So, ChatGTP Health answers the same heart longevity-grade question with a score swinging between an F and a B. Claude made it vary between a C and a B-. Anthropic said chatbots have "inherent variation in outputs". yes, inherent, like throwing a dice. www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

Column | I let ChatGPT analyze a decade of my Apple Watch data. Then I called my doctor.

I gave the new ChatGPT Health access to 29 million steps and 6 million heartbeat measurements. It drew questionable conclusions that changed each time I asked.

washingtonpost.com

KI-Plattformen brauchen unsere Kreativität. Doch je erfolgreicher generative KI wird, desto mehr zerstört sie ihre eigene Grundlage. Es geht um Model Collapse, externalisierte Kosten und die Frage nach Verantwortung. Ein paar Gedanken dazu hier: dorotheabaur.ch/texte-und-me...

Das Paradox der generativen KI

KI-Plattformen brauchen unsere Kreativität. Doch je erfolgreicher sie werden, desto mehr zerstören sie ihre eigene Grundlage. Über Model Collapse, externalisierte Kosten und die Frage nach Verantwortu...

dorotheabaur.ch

Haha, Accenture - hat jahrelang Millionen mit SEO- und Content-Marketing-Beratung. Nun nutzt der CEO die Plattform nicht mehr, von der diese Strategien abhängen. Zitat: "Überall dort, wo ich früher gegoogelt habe, nutze ich heute KI" 🤦‍♀️ www.20min.ch/story/untern...

KI im Alltag: Viel Potenzial, wenig echte Veränderung

GenAI ist überall Thema – doch in der täglichen Arbeit vieler Schweizer Firmen hat sich bislang erstaunlich wenig verschoben.

20min.ch

Neues Jahr, neue Plattform: Ich trenne meine Arbeit als Rednerin vom Consulting. Warum? Weil meine Keynotes keine Bulletpoint-Listen sind. Sie haben ihren Wert in sich selbst. Und ich ende garantiert nie mit "bucht einen Call". Deshalb neu: Klartext mit Tiefgang auf dorotheabaur.ch

Dr. Dorothea Baur – Rednerin. Denkerin. Autorin.

Rednerin, Denkerin und Autorin zu KI-Ethik, Nachhaltigkeit und Verantwortung. Klartext mit Tiefgang – für Bühnen, Texte und strategische Beratung.

dorotheabaur.ch