Description:

The Schmidt Program hosts a lunchtime conversation with human rights advocate and technologist Sam Gregory on fighting deepfakes and deceptive AI and deploying the power of video and technology to defend human rights and protect truth and evidence.

Photos and videos are vital sources of human rights documentation, evidence and storytelling – but they are becoming less trusted in a climate of factual scepticism and with technical advances like deepfakes and AI-generated content. How do human rights defenders meet an escalating burden of proof and reinforce the credibility of their work, amid growing authoritarianism and failing human rights systems? And how do we ensure that frontline activists and journalists can find ways to both use and resist AI, as well as be central participants in shaping these emerging technologies?

As Executive Director of WITNESS, recipient of the 2024 Peabody Global Impact Award, Gregory leads a global team empowering millions to use video and technology for human rights. He launched the groundbreaking “Prepare, Don’t Panic” initiative, tackling deepfakes and generative AI through policy and standards influence, public debate, and the first-ever Deepfakes Rapid Response Force. Sam has testified before the US Congress and Senate on AI and media transparency, delivered a TED Talk on combating malicious AI, and has over 25 years of global experience innovating at the intersection of video, technology, and human rights.