The present course aims to introduce students to the current state of Artificial Intelligence technology, as viewed through the larger, synoptic lens of individual, societal and environmental wellbeing. We will discuss significant challenges involved in regulating AI development and usage, as well as explore frames within which policies pertaining to technology may be established. Students will be encouraged to develop a more self-aware view of their role as co-creators of technology, independent of academic or professional interests.

To promote awareness of the AI-technology landscape and to enable a more informed, authentic and mature engagement with the various aspects of technology development, deployment and usage, among citizens.

At the end of this course, participants will:

• Have the ability to evaluate existing and upcoming technological developments with an objective and holistic eye
• Understand the rights and responsibilities of being a technology consumer
• Learn to distinguish between the different forms of technology that are subsumed under the heading of AI
• Understand how consumers can and ought to play an active part in the shaping of policies relating to technology

Date	Topics Covered	Time IST
26 January 2022	SESSION 1 The origins of AI technology Approach to tech development Analysing the different categories of tech effects The consumer as co-creator Q&A	5:30pm-7pm
28 January 2022	SESSION 2 Global consequences of AI technology What is machine learning? Why does tech regulation appear challenging? A policy framework for ensuring truly beneficial and equitable AI The consumer as policy shaper Q&A	5:30pm-7pm
30 January 2022	SESSION 3 (Activity)	5:30pm-6:30pm
6 February 2022	SESSION 4 (Activity)	5:30pm-6:30pm

All the mandatory categories in the application form must be filled in order for an application to be considered. Further details are provided in the application form.
This course can be taken by anyone with adequate English conversational skills; an interest in the principled development and responsible usage of technology.

Dr Monika Krishan, Senior Fellow (Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence), CPPR
Dr Monika Krishan’s academic background includes a Master’s in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India and a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA. Her research interests include image processing, psychovisual perception of textures, perception of animacy, goal based inference, perception of uncertainty and invariance detection in visual and non-visual domains. Areas of study also include the impact of artificial intelligence devices on human cognition from the developmental stages of the human brain, through adulthood, all the way through the aging process, and the resulting impact on the socio-cognitive health of society. She has worked on several projects on the cognitive aspects of the use and misuse of technology in social and antisocial contexts at SERC, IISc as well as the development of interactive graphics for Magnetic Resonance Imaging systems at Siemens. She is a member of Ohio University’s Consortium for the Advancement of Cognitive Science. She has offered services at economically challenged schools and hospitals for a number of years and continues to be an active community volunteer in the field of education and mental health.