Dota Szymborska’s story brings together adrenaline and deep reflection. From a fascination with rally cars to a PhD on the ethics of autonomous vehicles, and from early technological enthusiasm to sharp critical thinking about contemporary technology, her path has been anything but conventional. A two-time TEDx speaker, she now helps demystify AI ethics through ideas such as “algorithmic empathy” and advocates for a “glass box” model, reminding us that even in our interactions with algorithms, we should not lose our sense of ethics, proportion, or basic courtesy.
Dota Szymborska
“I truly believe that AI is not a servant; it is a co-partner. We must move from a ‘black box’ to a ‘glass box’ model to understand how decisions are made, because our lives depend on it.”
“I truly believe that AI is not a servant; it is a co-partner. We must move from a ‘black box’ to a ‘glass box’ model to understand how decisions are made, because our lives depend on it.”
If you follow Dota’s work, chances are you have already seen her on conference stages, panels, and in conversations about AI, ethics, and technology. It is easy to understand why. Her public presence reflects an impressive mix of knowledge, intellectual curiosity, and a rare ability to make complex questions feel both accessible and urgent, without ever slipping into empty rhetoric.
When we began planning this interview, we decided to do something a little different and turn it into a small experiment: asking Dota to answer the questions in under five minutes. The result is a conversation that may be brief in length, but is rich in thought, sharp in tone, and unmistakably her own, much like the way she approaches AI itself.
From Autonomous Vehicles to AI Ethics
Dota, you're a philosopher who started out fascinated by rally cars and ended up writing a PhD on the ethics of autonomous vehicles. How did that journey shape how you think about AI today?
First of all, my fascination with cars hasn't faded, but as for autonomous vehicles, that was a bit of a failure on my part as a futurist. About five years ago, I really thought I'd be able to sit back and enjoy a glass of wine while the car did the driving... I was very wrong about that. Once I learned to code a bit in Python, my interests naturally shifted toward AI as a broader field.
In your first TEDx talk "Passengers of Algorithms," you asked who is responsible when an autonomous car has to make a life-or-death decision. Why should people who will never sit in a self-driving car care about these questions?
Because their lives depend on it. That should be enough of a reason, shouldn't it?
Being Human in the Age of AI
Drawing on Hannah Arendt and Donna Haraway, you've reflected on how our growing dependence on devices and AI may blur the boundaries of what makes us human. Where do you draw the line between AI as a useful tool and the point at which that dependence begins to threaten our humanity?
I adore those two great philosophers; I teach my students about them with great passion, discussing the "banality of evil" and how we are becoming cyborgs. The boundary of what defines our humanity is becoming very difficult to pinpoint right now.
Many people see politeness toward AI as pointless because the machine cannot feel it. Yet you speak about "algorithmic empathy" as something that matters for humans. Why do you think the way we address AI shapes our own character, values, and social behavior?
Because I am a genuinely polite, well-mannered person to both machines and people. When we lived in London, we had a cleaning lady named Maria, and she was shocked that I didn't yell or nitpick. I, in turn, was shocked by her surprise. Her job was to help me, and my job was to be polite when asking her to do tasks. I know, it's a bit of a "bourgeois" example, but I really don't yell at my coworkers, and I don't yell at my family.
You propose moving from a "black box" to a "glass box" model so we can better understand how AI systems make decisions. But these systems are becoming more complex every day. How can people realistically ask for transparency and still remain meaningfully human in the loop?
That is an incredibly difficult question. Recruitment and credit applications are perhaps the best examples. In those cases, a person wants to know exactly why a specific decision was made, and they want a human being to be able to explain it to them.
Reveal Quote
“I often assume that everyone is using AI, but in reality, that isn’t the case at all.”
Reveal Quote
“I’m still very excited about how much I’ve read and how much more I can potentially read, and summarize, using LLMs!”
Teaching AI Ethics
You teach workshops for very different groups: university students, corporate executives… What do these different audiences teach you about how people actually think about AI?
They teach me that I live in a bubble. I often assume that everyone is using AI, but in reality, that isn't the case at all.
You also run workshops on AI ethics for businesses. What's the most common mistake you see companies making when they try to implement AI responsibly?
The surprise from directors when they realize that "business ethics" and "AI ethics" actually exist, and that these can be measurable and useful tools, rather than just marketing slogans.
What questions do your students ask that make you stop and think, or that you did not expect?
They ask if I really believe in what I'm teaching. And I tell them "yes," because I truly do!
Are your students more worried about AI or more excited about it?
They are different. I think this is where I can really see a true generational gap.
And what about you? You've spent years studying AI and ethics. Has anything made you more optimistic recently, or are you more worried than before?
I'm still very excited about how much I've read and how much more I can potentially read, and summarize, using LLMs!
And finally: for someone watching this who wants to learn more about AI and its ethical implications, where would you suggest they start?
Keep asking questions. Socrates was right!
About The Author
Branislava Lovre
Branislava Lovre works with media organizations, CSOs, and institutions to implement ethical AI in practice, delivering hands-on training, strategic guidance, and keynote talks on responsible AI adoption.
Branislava Lovre
Branislava Lovre works with media organizations, CSOs, and institutions to implement ethical AI in practice, delivering hands-on training, strategic guidance, and keynote talks on responsible AI adoption.
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