AI safety is having a moment. Once the preoccupation of technologists and futurists, it is now front-page news and kitchen-table conversation. This is a welcome development. But there is one crucial dimension the public conversation has yet to reach: the connection between AI safety and democracy. Without the political freedom that democracy secures, AI cannot and will not be safe. This point is urgent, because AI is poised to put unprecedented pressure on the very democratic institutions its safety requires. Matthew Botvinick, Anthropic’s lead on AI and the Rule of Law and author of AI and Political Freedom, will discuss what’s at stake and where some of the dangers lie. He will argue that AI itself may offer tools for making democracy more robust and resilient, allowing it not only to survive the spread of AI, but to flourish.

Matthew Botvinick’s book, AI and Political Freedom, will be available for purchase at the event.

This event is co-sponsored by the Neukom Center for the Rule of Law and the Stanford Law AI Initiative.
Light snacks will be served.