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As we approach 2024, we are thrilled to announce that applications are open for our upcoming technical workshops. Each event is a unique opportunity to delve into groundbreaking topics, collaborate with leading minds, and contribute to shaping the future in critical areas of technology and science.
Existential Hope AI Institution Design HackathonĀ (February 5Ā – 6, The Institute, San Francisco)Ā
AGI: Cryptography, Security & Multipolar Scenarios Workshop
(May 14 – 15, The Institute, San Francisco)Ā
Neurotech, BCI and WBE for Safe AI WorkshopĀ (May 21Ā – 22, Lighthaven Berkeley)Ā
Longevity Frontiers WorkshopĀ (JulyĀ 28Ā – 29, Stanford)
Space Frontiers WorkshopĀ (September 20 – 21, Chabot Space Center, Bay Area)
Molecular Manufacturing Architectures WorkshopĀ (dates and location tbd.)
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Dates:Ā February 5 – 6, 2024
Location:Ā The Institute, Salesforce Tower, San FranciscoĀ
As we navigate an era marked by rapid advancements in science and technology, particularly in artificial intelligence (AI), we stand at the crossroads of unprecedented challenges and opportunities. TheĀ Existential Hope AI Institution Design HackathonĀ is your chance to contribute actively to shaping the future of AI.
Our Goal:
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Who ShouldĀ Apply:
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Hackathon Format:
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This is a unique opportunity to work on the future impact of AI.Ā Apply todayĀ to be a part of shaping the future.Ā
As we embark on an ambitious year filled with transformative workshops, we invite you to join us as a sponsor. Your support plays a pivotal role in bringing together bright minds and fostering groundbreaking ideas across our six technical focus areas āĀ longevity biotech,Ā nanotech,Ā neurotech,Ā intelligent cooperation,Ā space, andĀ Existential Hope.
Why Sponsor:
Personal Longevity Group:
Beyond supporting our community, your donation mayĀ come with various perks. One such perk is the invitation to ourĀ Personal Longevity Group. This is an exclusive community of individuals who are passionate about exploring cutting-edge treatments and practices that can slow, and eventually reverse, personal aging. Meeting monthly, the group offers rich opportunities for discussions and insights from industry experts.Ā To explore the different ways you can support, please review our donation tiers.
Contact for Sponsorship:
For more details and to discuss workshop sponsorship opportunities, please contact [email protected].
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This month, we were thrilled to host Vision Weekend USA, which brought together some of the most forward-thinking minds in science and technology. We were astonished by the collaboration, innovative visions, and future-focused discussions. Thank you to our speakers, Foresight Fellows, volunteers, and especially to everyone sponsoring our Vision Weekends āĀ we could not have done it without you!Ā
Our Vision Weekend 2023 sponsors were: Mission Control AI, Quadrascope, DeepGenomics, Schmidt Futures, Agoric, TomorrowBio, Ocean Protocol, VitaDAO, BlueYard, Chroma, Filecoin Foundation, Molecule, Deep Origin, Stealth Reinforcement Learning Co, SCSP, and BioAge.Ā Thank you all for making these two events possible!
The Vision Weekend USA panel discussions will be shared shortly.
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Jason Crawford ofĀ Roots of ProgressĀ joins us this month on our Existential Hope podcast! He explores the concept of protopia, and emphasizes a future of continuous, incremental development. He positions AI as pivotal in transforming society, democratizing services, and bridging divides. This vision diverges from utopian ideals punctuated by major eucatastrophes. He instead highlights how protopia is a description of the human condition.
Listen here:Ā https://www.existentialhope.com/podcasts
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As we close another remarkable year, our heartfelt thanks go out to our entire community. Your unwavering support and participation have been instrumental in our success this year. We, the team at Foresight āĀ Allison Duettmann,Ā Beatrice Erkers,Ā Niamh Peren,Ā Lou de Kerhuelvez,Ā Lydia La Roux,Ā Amy Jehan,Ā Sherry Hull, andĀ Aleksandra SmilekĀ ā extend our gratitude to each member of our community. Your involvement has truly made a difference.
Weāre looking forward to making progress with you in 2024!
Join Our Team in 2024:
As we look to the future, we are excited to announce that we are expanding our team. We haveĀ three open positionsĀ starting as soon as possible in the new year:
These roles offer unique opportunities to contribute to our mission and work alongside a dedicated and dynamic team.
Application Details:
For more information on each position and to submit your application, please clickĀ here. Ā
We are excited to welcome new members to our team and to continue our journey of innovation and progress. Join us in making 2024 an even more impactful year!
Congratulations toĀ Sam Jardine,Ā aĀ collaboratorĀ on a newly releasedĀ Routledge Defence Studies book on Climate security and geopolitics:Ā Climate Change Conflict and (In)Security: Hot War.Ā He is the primary author of Chapter 3: Geopolitics and Security in the Changing Antarctic
Scott Emmons, alongside side Stuart Russell, Euan Ong, and Luke Bailey,Ā released a paper in arXiv: “Image Hijacks: Adversarial Images can Control Generative Models at Runtime.“. They explore three types ofĀ image hijacks toĀ the image input to a vision-language model (VLM), and question the security of foundation models.Ā
Aaron MayerĀ is continuing to raise for his algorithmic hedge fund,Ā Open Heart Capital, which has returned over 60% YTD. He was delighted to speak at Vision Weekend about how he caps his salary and donates any surplus towards public health charities, and if you’re considering doing something similar, he wants you to reach out. Lastly, he will be running the 7th annualĀ Impact FellowshipĀ this January in SF:Ā a week-long tech-for-impact event designed for youngĀ andĀ gifted CS students who hope to use their skills for social good. If you know folks who might be good speakers, get in touch with him!
Congratulations toĀ Oluseon Taiwo, who madeĀ Forbes 30 under 30 ā Manufacturing and Industry.Ā Confounding Solideon (formerly Additive Space Technologies), he is changingĀ aerospace manufacturing with machine learning, collaborative robots and 3-D welding.
Kudos toĀ Tessa Alexanian, who has recently:Ā
Congratulations toĀ Abhishek Singh, who recently presented aĀ posterĀ for theirĀ publicationĀ at Neurips’23:Ā Posthoc privacy guarantees for collaborative inference with modified Propose-Test-Release.Ā
This work introduces a new framework enhancing data privacy in cloud-based machine learning, offering formal privacy guarantees by integrating local sensitivity measures and Adversarial Representation Learning into neural network queries.
Laurence Ion | Vitalia: New Cities to Accelerate Scientific Progress and Make Death Optional
Laurence Ion, co-initiator at Vitalia, discusses new cities to accelerate scientific progress & make death optional. His aim is to seed a multi-jurisdictional permanent city fostering drug development to market in 4 months, not 10+ years.Ā
Siddhartha Kasivajhula | How we should all have the best things
Siddhartha KasivajhulaĀ explores the relationship between desire, economics, and the concept of ‘identity architecture’ to suggest that a deeper understanding of these elements could lead to a world where everyone can access the best things.
Feynman Prize Awards Ceremony 2023
Join us for the Foresight Feynman Prizes Awards Ceremony! Named in honor of physicist Richard Feynman, these prizes are granted by the Foresight Institute to recognize recent brilliant achievements in the field of Nanotechnology.
Sofya Lebedeva | Beyond Microbial Resistance: Nonprofit Roadmap to AMR Solutions
Sofya Lebedeva, co-founder of ARMOR [Alliance for Reducing Microbial Resistance], has over 3 years of experience in the biosecurity space, and a PhD (in progress) in Clinical Medicine at Oxford. She will be working on this project part time, providing additional research capacity and helping facilitate connections in academia. She’s half scientist, half entrepreneur, and all about positive impact.
Catalin Mitelut | Lo-fi approaches for uploading: developing a Turing test for cloning of biological organisms using High-precision Multi-modal dataset Behavior Modeling (HMBM)Ā
Catalin Mitelut, JD, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher at NYU and University of Basel working on the neuroscience of agency in biological and artificial systems.
Giulio Ragazzon | Driven Chemical Processes
Giulio Ragazzon is the principal investigator of the Laboratory of Driven Chemical Processes. His research interests evolved from photochemistry to molecular machines, self-assembling systems and nanomaterials. He is the recipient of multiple awards, including the European Young Chemist Award.
Danielle Allen | Beneficial Futures of Pluralism, Democracy, and the Tools Needed to Build Them
Danielle Allen, a Harvard professor and director at the Safra Center for Ethics, is a renowned political philosopher and author advocating for democracy, civic education, and pandemic resilience. Her influential work spans leading a $6 billion foundation, writing for the Washington Post, and making history as the first Black woman to run for statewide office in Massachusetts.
Conceptual Boundaries Workshop
Do you have experience with Active Inference, Embedded Agency, biological gap junctions, or other frameworks that separate agents from their environment? Apply to the Conceptual Boundaries Workshop for AI safety. February, Austin TX:
ApplyĀ here!
Applications open!Ā Worldbuilding Course: Co-create the World of 2024
This virtual and interactive course will engage with the most pressing global challenges of our timeāclimate change, the risks of AI, and the complex ethical questions arising in the wake of new technologies.Ā
As a participant, you’ll craftĀ visions of the world in 2045, with a special focus on integrating AI into our worldbuilds. This includes looking into the economic frameworks, institutions, and societal values that will support them. You’ll gain proficiency in critical and strategic thinking methodologies such as red teaming and forecasting.Ā
VisitĀ our websiteĀ for a detailed curriculum, other resources, some of our mentors for this course, and to apply.
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