Inside TEDAI Vienna 2024 with Dr. Alina Nikolaou

• The first TED conference on artificial intelligence in Europe was held from October 17 to 19 in Vienna.
• It brought together more than 800 experts from various disciplines and industries.
• The conference had an interdisciplinary approach, with speakers from diverse fields, ranging from technology and engineering to philosophy and the arts.

At TEDAI Vienna 2024, over 800 experts and visionaries came together to explore the future of artificial intelligence – not just as a technology, but as a force reshaping society and sparking new conversations. Organized by Dr. Alina Nikolaou and Vlad Gozman, this event marked Europe’s first TED conference focused exclusively on AI, blending insights from technologists, artists, philosophers, and policymakers.

In our AImpactful conversation, Dr. Nikolaou – Director, Curator, and Host – reflects on the inspiration and aspirations behind TEDAI Vienna, sharing the unique atmosphere and the journey that brought this dynamic event to life.

AI Usage Notice: In preparing this introduction and the episode transcript, AI tools were used with careful human oversight and editing. We believe in transparency regarding the use of AI in our work.

Q. This October, Vienna became the epicenter of groundbreaking AI conversations. As the organizer, what are your initial impressions of this unique event in Europe?

A. My initial impressions are truly multifaceted, but what comes to mind first is that vibrant sense of community that resonated after the conference. As organizers, we strive to create a space for connection and conversation. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. For this sense of community to come about, there are so many different factors – it’s the weather, how people traveled and slept the night before, and numerous other elements that come together at a single moment.

But I feel that some kind of magic happened, and many attendees really felt a sense of openness, warmth, and welcoming community. I noticed this myself as host and organizer, walking through the halls during breaks and chatting with people. I felt that tangible sense of positivity and optimism, along with an awareness of the challenges in AI and technology ahead. This vibrant sense of open community is something I’m taking with me for the next days and weeks.

Q. That sense of community seems crucial to the success of such an event. How did you foster this atmosphere, and were there any specific activities or structures in place to encourage networking and collaboration?

A. Absolutely. We put a lot of thought into creating an environment that would foster connections and meaningful conversations. One of the key elements was our application process. For both TEDAI Vienna and TED in Vancouver, attendees apply for a conference pass, and we read all of the applications ourselves – it’s not done by AI or any other software program.

The reason we do this is that we really want to see people’s passion and enthusiasm for being part of this event. It’s not about simply buying tickets because your company is sending you. It’s because you genuinely want to be there, to learn specific things and meet particular people.

The result of this application process, even though it’s a lot of work for my team, is that you get a room full of people who have traveled from all over the world specifically to be there. These people make the most out of the experience. They speak to everybody, they’re not shy, and this is what made the feeling of community so lively and vibrant.

We also structured the event to include various interactive sessions beyond just the main stage talks. We had workshops led by former TED speakers, debate rounds where attendees could dig deep into specific issues with a small group, and even “idea adventures” where people could leave the conference venue to visit exciting sites related to AI and technology.

Q. TEDAI inlcuded 21 speakers shared insights into the current state and future of AI. The curation of speakers and topics for such an event must be challenging. Can you walk us through your process for selecting speakers and ensuring a balanced representation of AI topics?

A. Curating the lineup was indeed one of our biggest challenges. When you only have one day of TED Talks, you’re not going to make everybody happy. Our overall aim was to put together a very interdisciplinary conference, which means speaking to a variety of professional backgrounds, from technologists to artists to human rights advocates.

We started looking for exciting ideas back in January. My main agenda was to keep it balanced – I didn’t want this conference to feel like a techno-optimist’s fiesta or a doomsday gathering. It needed to be a gathering of realistic optimists who are aware of both the challenges and opportunities of this technology.

So, curating this event meant that this needs to be our foundation, that we need to have a balance of excited and concerned voices from different professional backgrounds. and I think we managed that quite well, in my opinion.

We had speakers from France, from Denmark and Egypt and Italy and Germany, so I really wanted to feel internationality on stage and cultural diversity when it comes to backgrounds. So we really tried to bring all of the exciting ideas from all over the world to Vienna.

And secondly, when you’re sitting in a TED theater and only hearing ideas about AI all day, it’s very likely that you’ll get tired of it at some point. The way I was thinking about putting this together was inspired, believe it or not, by Black Mirror.

Many people can watch several Black Mirror episodes one after another, even though they’re all based on or anchored in a new technology. But you don’t watch it only because of the technology and what it can do; you don’t watch it because the augmented reality, VR, or AI in the story – even though it might be so cool, that it can enhance the viewing experience. You’re actually watching it for the ideas and stories shared. This was the kind of feeling and vibe that I tried to imitate, using AI as the backdrop for interesting stories and ideas.

Q. This interdisciplinary conference united various fields—ranging from human rights and deep tech to finance and legal applications. TEDAI was structured into four main sessions, each with its own focus.

A. Our overall aim was to find ideas that demonstrate how AI might deeply impact civilizational foundations without getting too abstract or philosophical.

Session one was called “Plug and Play,” and it was dedicated to how AI is changing the way we create and communicate, specifically regarding visual culture and video generation. It also covered what AI means for archaeology and unearthing old ideas that are currently buried, through new AI technologies that help us decode ancient papyrus rolls, for instance. We also discussed knowledge documentation and how AI-generated text changes the way we document, sort, and structure information and knowledge. This session also included a focus on creativity and video design—how we collaborate with AI to create new scenarios in digital environments, including video games. So, this session really centered around creativity and communication, which is close to my heart due to my background in communication science.

The second session, “Wired Differently,” was focused on software development, which, in my view, is one of the most exciting frontiers where AI is truly changing the game. We brought in Thomas Dohmke, the CEO of GitHub, to discuss whether coding will be the new writing or if coding will even be necessary if AI can write our code. Those were very exciting questions for me to explore. We also spoke about open-source AI with Thomas Wolf from Hugging Face, discussing whether we need open-source AI to achieve really good AI, along with its risks and benefits. Jonas Andrulis from Aleph Alpha, one of Europe’s most exciting AI startups, talked about their work on tokenization. This was a more technical session, but I still hope that it felt engaging and informative for people not into computer science.

The third session, “Code of Conduct,” took a deep dive into legal, moral, and environmental issues in AI. We discussed the European AI Regulation Act with Gabriele Mazzini, who helped architect it. We also addressed AI and deepfake pornography, specifically how it affects female populations and what can be done about it. We looked at the environmental cost of AI, specifically the energy and water consumption involved, as well as its current negative impact on labor and the workforce. This third session really took a deep dive into these ethical concerns.

Finally, the last session was designed to leave the audience with a positive outlook, which is something we truly believe in at TEDAI Vienna. At the end of the day, we believe in human ingenuity and imagination, and that if we bring the best minds together to solve these problems, we can figure it out. This session featured Raia Hadsell, Vice President of Research at Google DeepMind, presenting their current work on Earth and weather modeling. We also had Juergen Schmidhuber, often referred to as the father of modern AI, taking a deep dive into AI’s past, present, and future.

Overall, while the tone was optimistic, we made sure to highlight critical aspects and arguments throughout the conference. We aimed to provide a balanced view of AI’s potential and challenges.

Q. The event seems to have covered a wide range of AI applications. However, healthcare wasn’t a focus. Can you elaborate on why, and how you made decisions about which sectors to highlight?

A. The decision not to focus on healthcare was a deliberate one, and it speaks to our curation process. We know there’s been huge progress in AI and healthcare, particularly in areas like disease detection.

However, this progress isn’t new – we’ve been seeing it build up over the last few years. What I was looking for was an exciting idea on how we can make this new technology affordable or accessible to many people. I hope that AI in healthcare won’t remain something reserved only for a very small portion of the world’s population.

I was specifically scouting for ideas that would make this gift that AI represents for healthcare available to many, and I didn’t find a convincing idea on that front. In my view, I’d rather leave it out completely than have an idea that I’m not 100% convinced by, just for the sake of having it in our portfolio.

This approach applies to all sectors – we’re always looking for fresh, innovative ideas that push the boundaries of what’s possible with AI, while also considering the broader implications and potential for widespread impact.

Q. Every conference is a great opportunity for learning, both for participants and organizers. Can you share some challenges you faced or some particularly great aspects of the experience – things you learned, heard, or discovered?

A. Certainly. When you attend a TED event, whether it’s TED in Vancouver or TEDAI, it’s not just about the TED Talks that people know from YouTube. Attendees often have very high expectations because they’ve seen that one YouTube video that changed their lives. They believe that attending a TED conference will give them this experience “on steroids.”

But it’s not quite like that. There’s a reason why one particular talk changes your life and not all the others. Regardless of the high expectations for the TED Talks, what you can really expect from a TED conference lies in the spaces, sessions, and discovery activities between talks. These can be workshops led by former TED speakers, debate rounds where you engage deeply with 12 other people on a specific issue, panels, or even “ideas adventures” where you leave the conference building to visit exciting sites that expand your horizons on technology and AI.

One of the main learnings, however, comes from organizing these sessions. We can’t make all of these sessions accessible to everybody because there’s only a certain number of people that can fit in a workshop room or join a tour to a particular place. This inherently limits the capacity of these discovery sessions.

When we opened sign-ups on October 1st, some sessions were fully booked within three hours. It was beautiful to see people’s hunger and interest in these activities – it really filled me with joy. At the same time, it meant that some people didn’t get into their favorite activities and had to join sessions they hadn’t initially ranked as relevant for them.

This had interesting byproducts. Some people were disappointed, which I understand. But others found it really cool because they ended up in a session they would have never signed up for and had the best time.

I think this is one of the major learnings: How do we create this rich program that is still realistic and aligned with practicalities like capacity and logistics, while at the same time giving people the option to make the most out of the experience? This could mean either signing up for something they love or falling in love with something they never would have considered before.

Q. I always find it interesting to hear how people enter the field of AI. Could you share your story? What sparked your interest in artificial intelligence, and how did you connect the dots between your academic career in communication science, your passion for emerging technologies, and your current work with TEDAI and TEDx Vienna? It would be fascinating to hear how these different aspects of your professional life have come together.

A. I’ll start at the beginning, but don’t worry, I won’t go too far back. I never set out with the specific goal of curating TEDx Vienna. I believe when you start with such precise wishes, things usually don’t work out. It was a combination of hard work, luck, and meeting connections who saw potential in my work and ideas.

My fascination with communication science primarily focused on virtual reality and its effects. Around 2015-2016, VR became a big trend, even though it wasn’t entirely new. It was positively portrayed in public discourse as an “empathy machine” and an “attitude change machine” that could make people more empathetic and concerned about issues like nature or vulnerable populations.

In my Ph.D., I investigated whether these effects held true in scientific literature through a meta-analysis. I also explored to what extent experts saw these effects reflected in real-life projects through qualitative work, and finally, to what extent we were seeing such effects in laboratory behavioral experiments.

My conclusion was that it doesn’t work as simply as claimed. It’s very context-dependent, and we humans have a tendency to hype, hope for, and fear new technologies. Based on this conclusion, I became more interested in artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and other relatively new technologies. I was particularly intrigued by how we talk about them, how they arrive in public discourse, and how they’re discussed from different perspectives and by different actors.

Because I had been involved with the TEDx Vienna community for about 10 years, these two worlds merged well and clicked, helping me become part of the TEDAI event now.

Q. Looking ahead, what do you see as the next steps for TEDAI? Are there plans for future events? How do you see events like TEDAI Vienna contributing to public understanding and engagement with AI?

A. I think there’s definitely potential for a second edition of this conference. The hunger is there. People are starving for interdisciplinarity, for meeting people outside of their bubble – not just from a business perspective to foster fruitful collaborations, but also on a personal level, to feel that they’re part of something bigger than themselves. And this is something that TEDAI Vienna delivers.

However, there are no specific plans yet. The immediate plan for the team is to really soak up all of the learnings from this event, brainstorm, and imagine how we can make this event even more magical in the future. Then we’ll put it into a plan and get to work.

One thing I can say is that we’re committed to maintaining the balance and diversity that made this first event so special. We want to continue bringing together voices from different backgrounds, fostering dialogue between technologists, ethicists, artists, and policymakers. The field of AI is evolving so rapidly, and we need these spaces where people can come together to discuss, debate, and shape the future of this technology.

Q. Finally, what advice would you give to young people who are interested in AI but may not know where to start?

A. I think a TED Talk can be an excellent starting point to open a door into a field, whether it’s generative AI, machine learning, or using AI in psychology. It can be a beautiful way to get interested in and excited about a topic. But this door, you then really need to walk through.

There are wonderful and excellent research programs all over Europe. One of my takeaways from this conference was that there’s so much groundbreaking ideas and science taking place on AI within the halls of universities. Europe’s challenge will be to get those ideas out of the universities and translate them into real-life projects.

My recommendation, if you’re young – and by the way, I believe everyone is young, it’s a mentality, not just a biological fact – is to go out and explore. You’ll find exciting AI work taking place within human rights organizations, within companies (whether it’s software or hardware), in legal settings – in all corners of life. It feels like AI might be something similar to electricity, permeating all facets of human life and work.

So I would say: Go out, explore, and be adventurous. If AI really is as big as we think it is, it will eventually find you. The key is to stay curious, keep learning, and don’t be afraid to engage with these new technologies. The future of AI is being shaped right now, and young minds have a crucial role to play in ensuring it develops in a way that benefits all of humanity.