In the Media
7 Oct 2024
AAP Factcheck
Fake Kamala Harris ad promotes insurance, not abortion rights
George Driver
Allyn Robins, an AI expert at Wellington think tank Brainbox, said while it was difficult to be definitive, “the evidence points overwhelmingly to this being an AI voiceover”.
“Just examining the audio, the intonation is strange and stilted, there’s not much of a sense of continuity or ‘flow’ between sentences, there’s a lack of emotiveness that would be very odd for a politician wading into such a charged issue,” Mr Robins said.
29 Aug 2024
RNZ
How your social media posts are training AI: What you need to know
Katie Kenny
Even deleting social media accounts "doesn't fully protect you from having your data harvested in future", AI lead at public interest think tank Brainbox Allyn Robins told RNZ.
"More and more, every single online interaction is being mined for data to train AI."
6 Aug 2024
GOVIS
GOVIS 2024 Trust to Innovate - Trusting the government with AI
Phil Pennington
Panellists:
- Phil Pennington, Reporter at Radio New Zealand (panel chair)
- Emma MacDonald, Director of the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation at Stats NZ
- Allyn Robins, AI Lead at Brainbox
- Amber Guette, Chief Integrity Advisor at Hooseland Integrity Commission (pen name).
29 Jul 2024
The Spinoff
AI is already straining electricity systems – and we’re just at the beginning
Shanti Mathias
Allyn Robins, a senior consultant at the Brainbox Institute, a Wellington-based digital policy thinktank points out that it’s almost impossible to know where the electricity for AI comes from.
25 Jul 2024
1 News
Why we shouldn't expect cyber outages, but prepare for them
Ellie Franco
Allyn Robins, AI lead of the New Zealand-based technology think tank Brainbox Institute compared the CrowdStrike situation to the 1962 loss of an $80 million NASA rocket due to a single missing hyphen in its code.
3 Jul 2024
RNZ
Experts cautiously optimistic about expanding AI in education, health sectors
Soumya Bhamidipati
AI lead of public interest think tank Brainbox, Allyn Robins, said there were reasons to be enthusiastic, but warned people should not get carried away by what he described as "the peak of a hype-cycle about AI".
24 May 2024
Newshub
How Google's sweeping shift to AI-powered search results could reshape internet
Finn Hogan
Google has announced a pivot to AI-generated search results, first showing AI summaries ahead of human-made websites - a seemingly minor change with massive ramifications.
"If you use the internet at all? This is going to impact your life," said Allyn Robins, AI lead at the Brainbox Institute.
6 May 2024
The Spinoff
Here’s what happened when I replaced my personality with the Meta AI chatbot for a day
Fran Barclay
Keeping up with online communication can be exhausting, so Fran Barclay enlisted the help of Meta’s new ‘intelligent assistant’ to respond to all her messages. Could her mates tell the difference?
27 Mar 2024
NZ Herald
AI revolution: Why the speed of human job losses is causing concern
Chris Keall
“Spark is one of the first big tech companies to admit to replacing jobs with AI, but it certainly won’t be the last – and many more companies will be doing it quietly,” says Victoria University senior lecturer in artificial intelligence Andrew Lensen.
22 Feb 2024
Tech Policy Press
Building Common Infrastructure for Meaningful Tech Transparency
Tom Barraclough, Jason Pielemeier
Tom Barraclough and Jason Pielemeier from the Action Coalition on Meaningful Transparency (ACT) say tech transparency is an emerging ecosystem that requires nurturing, support, and the development of long-lasting infrastructure, including the ACT’s new Transparency Initiatives Portal.
15 Feb 2024
AI Forum
Launch of NZ AI Policy Tracker from The Brainbox Institute welcomed by AIFNZ
The recent launch of a significant resource, the NZ AI Policy Tracker, by the esteemed Brainbox Institute is welcomed by the AI Forum New Zealand. This tool represents a pioneering effort to consolidate information concerning Aotearoa New Zealand’s disparate AI regulatory framework, providing a unified platform for accessing pertinent materials.
29 Jan 2024
RNZ
Could Taylor Swift be the catalyst for AI regulation?
Emile Donovan
US politicians have called for new laws to criminalise the creation of deepfake images and Twitter has pledged to hire around 100 moderators after explicit deepfaked photos of Taylor Swift were viewed millions of times online.
Nights technology correspondent and senior consultant at think tank Brainbox Allyn Robins speaks to Emile Donovan about the pitfalls of AI and how this could just be the tip of the iceberg in terms of deepfakes.
21 Dec 2023
BusinessDesk
How to navigate the era of unreal images
Allyn Robins
For many, it all began with the pope’s puffer jacket.
Maybe for you, it was a digitally enhanced Tom Cruise impersonator, or the recent study that showed that some artificial intelligence-generated faces could look more "realistic" than real ones, or the sophisticated deepfake doppelganger of Zuru boss Nick Mowbray that nearly fooled the company’s chief financial officer.
Whatever the catalyst, more and more people are coming to the same conclusion: seeing is no longer believing.
7 Nov 2023
RNZ
It's time to admit 'we're in an AI bubble'
Allyn Robins
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the technology story of 2023. The chief executive of Google says its impact will be "more profound" than "fire or electricity". McKinsey happily reports that 'Generative' AI alone could "add trillions of dollars of value to the global economy", while a coalition of industry luminaries sign a statement arguing that "mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority". Amazon has just invested billions of dollars into an AI company that it hopes can help it rival Microsoft's investment in OpenAI. AI is passing the bar, tutoring schoolchildren, and producing viral videos.
In the face of all of this burgeoning wave of hype and investment, I say - enjoy it while it lasts. Because it won't.
11 Oct 2023
BusinessDesk
Business of Tech podcast: are algorithms really ruining democracy?
Peter Griffin
With the 2023 general election just days away, we have one last episode around tech and politics, this time looking at the fear that concerted and bad-faith social media campaigns are eroding the very fabric of democracy.
We're joined by Ximena Smith from the public interest think tank Brainbox Institute, who digs into whether the outcome of democratic elections is really being swung by social media and all its algorithms.
18 Sept 2023
InternetLab
In the second interview of the series, Tom Barraclough talks about auditing mechanisms for platforms
Francisco Brito Cruz, Iná Jost and Catharina Vilela
In an interview with InternetLab, the director of Brainbox spoke about independent audits and their relevance when applying new laws that seek to regulate digital platforms.
4 Jul 2023
RNZ
Concerns at Westfield digital ads that film and target shoppers
Lisa Owen
It is a familiar story – you walk into the mall to buy one thing and you walk out with an armful of bags. It can be hard enough to ignore the bright lights and sale signs... Now, it seems AI is giving us a wink and a nudge. Westfield is under fire from advocacy group Consumer for using digital billboards that film largely oblivious shoppers, and serve up advertisements based on age, gender, and even mood.
6 Jun 2023
Stuff
Tackling harmful content never going to be a simple discussion
Tom Pullar-Strecker
Internal Affairs’ ambitious plan to regulate large social media and online platforms and to change the way the media, film, advertising, steaming television, video game and broadcasting industries are policed has quickly run into some pretty heavy traffic.
3 Jun 2023
Stuff
Why tech is both fantastic and scary
Emile Donovan
There’s a lot going on in the world of tech, stuff is moving fast… and the thing is, there’s a lot of snake oil out there too.
So, we asked Allyn Robins from tech policy think tank Brainbox to identify three burgeoning areas of technology that he’s excited about, and three that he’s a bit scared of… but, naturally, he didn’t follow instructions...
3 Jun 2023
RNZ
Tom Barraclough: are your social media threads under threat?
Colin Peacock
This week the government released a Safer Online Services and Media Platforms 'discussion document' proposing to regulate online content the same way other media is regulated. Its set off alarm bells for everyone from Stuff head Sinead Boucher to the Free Speech Union, yet has been welcomed by others as a big step towards making the internet a safer place.
The proposal doesn't look to expand the categories of illegal content, says Tom Barraclough, and takes its lead from the European Union's recently implemented Digital Services Act.
16 May 2023
RNZ
Development of AI fakes speeding up
Phil Pennington
Artificial Intelligence is developing at such speed it can now fake just about anyone from the digital breadcrumbs we leave behind us. New Zealand tech players have been discussing how much choice you get in the matter. Phil Pennington reports.
3 May 2023
Newshub
Why 'Godfather' of artificial intelligence had to 'blow the whistle' on technology
Nick Truebridge
Geoffrey Hinton, also known as the "Godfather of AI," decided he had to "blow the whistle" on the technology he helped develop after worrying about how smart it was becoming, he told CNN on Tuesday.
29 Mar 2023
Newshub
Govt says it's monitoring artificial intelligence's implications as hundreds of tech leaders call to pause its development
Lauren Hendricksen
Some of the biggest names in technology have pushed the alarm button over the rise of artificial intelligence. They say it could pose a "profound risk to society and humanity".
1 Sept 2022
Lawfare
Platforms Are Testing Self-Regulation in New Zealand. It Needs a Lot of Work.
Curtis Barnes, Tom Barraclough, Allyn Robins
On July 25, New Zealand adopted a new industry-led mechanism designed to provide guidance for social media platforms to enhance safety and mitigate online harm: the Aotearoa New Zealand Code of Practice for Online Safety and Harms.
24 Jul 2022
Stuff
Social media giants agree to 'first of its kind' code of conduct in Aotearoa
Sophie Cornish
Social media giants including TikTok and Meta will soon become more accountable for the content on their platforms in New Zealand, voluntarily signing up to a code of conduct led by Netsafe, which targets issues such as hate speech and misinformation.
14 Mar 2022
Newsroom
Media law review raises thorny freedom of expression issues
Ximena Smith
New Zealand has been trying to update its media laws for the modern digital environment for over a decade. Experts warn there are no simple solutions, so has the Government now bitten off more than it can chew?
20 Jan 2022
Capital Monitor
Engaging with Facebook and Twitter is “like talking to kids”
Paul Hodgson
When investors try to flag concerns to Facebook and Twitter about social media-related issues, the two tech giants often respond with stonewalling and obstruction. Google appears little better. Here we set out why.
17 Nov 2021
Futurefive
The deepfake dilemma: How it affects privacy, security & law in Aotearoa
Sara Barker
On a YouTube channel called Genuine Fake, a video shows Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as the character of Maleficent. Her husband Clarke Gayford then appears shortly afterwards. Even National Party leader Judith Collins looks a bit like a forest fairy princess.
19 Oct 2021
Stuff
NZ Super Fund ends campaign to reform Facebook, Alphabet and Twitter in the wake of the Christchurch terror attack
Rob Stock
The NZ Super Fund is wrapping up its campaign to get Facebook, Alphabet (Google) and Twitter to prevent violent and objectionable content being broadcast on their social media platforms.
29 Sept 2021
Scoop
Access Alliance Calls For Life Changing Accessibility Legislation To Remove And Prevent Barriers
Access Alliance
Access Alliance, New Zealand’s largest alliance of Disabled Persons Organisations, disability advocacy groups, and service providers, calls on the government to implement the legal framework outlined in the report released today,
7 May 2021
Stuff
Letter from the editor: Trying to instil trust in the news
Anna Fifield
There’s an old trope about journalists jostling with used car salesmen and real estate agents for last place in most-trusted rankings. In some cases – when tabloid hacks rifle through rubbish bins or voicemail baskets, or paparazzi hound people in the streets – this has been deserved.
18 Aug 2020
Stuff
Those who shared Covid-19 rumour could be liable to the Harmful Digital Communications Act, Netsafe says
Katie Kenny
The man believed to be behind the recent Covid-19 outbreak rumour said he’s willing to accept the consequences of his actions, describing them as “the worst things I’ve ever done”.
17 Aug 2020
Newsroom
‘Infodemic’ evolves as Covid-19 returns to NZ
Marc Daalder
Analysis: The return of Covid-19 to New Zealand has been accompanied by conspiracy theories about the virus and the Government's response. How big a problem is this and what can - or should - we do about it? Marc Daalder reports
9 Dec 2019
Newshub
Snapchat unleashes deepfakes feature called 'Cameo'
Dan Satherley
Deepfakes - putting a person's face on another person's body in a video - are about to go mainstream. So far best-known for internet pranksters putting celebrity heads on pornstars' bodies, the controversial technology is currently being tested by messaging app Snapchat.
4 Sept 2019
Stuff
Can Kiwis tell fact from fake news in the leadup to the 2020 elections?
Katie Kenny, Tommy Livingston
Young people are criticised for not engaging in politics but experts say adults today are less likely to be able to tell fact from fake news. Katie Kenny and Tommy Livingston report on the risks of a post-truth political landscape.
21 May 2019
Stuff
Deepfakes and synthetic media: The new age of disinformation is growing
Michael Daly
Amidst the threats identified in a new report of the digital threats to democracy are two challenges with sinister sounding names - deepfakes and synthetic media. But what are these emerging risks and why should we care about them?
20 May 2019
Newshub
'Deepfake' videos could be next social media minefield - researchers
Katie Fitzgerald
There's growing concern about the damage sophisticated fake videos can have on the public.
A new Law Foundation report says deepfake media could prove troublesome to tech companies and the Government, following the Christchurch Call.
20 May 2019
NZ Herald
NZ study highlights the risk of 'deep fakes' on social media - and why our lawmakers should leave it alone
Chris Keall
A new study funded by the Law Foundation highlights the risk of "deep fakes" on social media - which co-author Tom Barraclough says "make it look or sound like something happened when it didn't".
20 May 2019
RNZ
Deepfakes, synthetic media a threat to democracy
Morning Report
Thanks to Donald Trump the phrase "fake news" is, for better or worse, forever embedded in our collective consciousness. But fake news - false information which is spread deliberately to deceive people - is just the tip of the iceberg threatening our democracy.