In this episode Dr Caroline Green from Oxford's Institute for Ethics in AI speaks to Professor Alondra Nelson about the social foundations of AI governance and thick alignment, a broader approach to aligning artificial intelligence with human values. Professor Nelson reflects on her interdisciplinary career bridging science, social research, and policy, including her role in developing the White House Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights. She discusses how public engagement, trust, and clear communication are essential for ensuring that AI systems serve society rather than deepen existing inequalities.

Together, they explore the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in AI ethics and governance, highlighting the risks of deploying powerful technologies without meaningful public dialogue. The conversation examines emerging challenges such as emotional relationships with AI chatbots, the role of governments and companies in shaping responsible innovation, and how inclusive policymaking can help align AI development with democratic values and the public good.

In this episode Dr Caroline Green from Oxford's Institute for Ethics in AI speaks to Dr Joy Buolamwini and Angela Oduor Lungati, Executive Director of Ushahidi, about building ethical, community-centered AI from Africa and beyond. Joy reflects on her journey from uncovering bias in facial recognition systems to founding the Algorithmic Justice League, sharing how her research - featured in the documentary Coded Bias - exposes the social harms embedded in AI. Angela discusses her work leading Ushahidi, an open-source platform used globally to crowdsource crisis and human rights data, and how community-generated knowledge can shape more inclusive and context-aware AI systems.

Together, they explore women’s leadership in technology, the importance of grassroots voices in shaping AI governance, and the need for data justice, language representation, and accountability across the AI supply chain. The conversation highlights Kenya’s national AI strategy, Africa’s growing role as a builder - not just consumer - of AI, and the environmental and labor impacts of AI infrastructure. The episode closes with reflections on creativity, humanity, and the role of art in guiding responsible innovation.

In this episode of Accelerating AI Ethics from Oxford’s Institute for Ethics in AI, Dr Caroline Green speaks with Professor Ignacio Cofone, Professor of AI Law and Regulation, about his book The Privacy Fallacy: Harm and Power in the Information Economy.

They discuss why today’s consent-based privacy laws are ill-suited to an AI-driven data economy, how data harms are often relational rather than individual, and why focusing on data use - rather than data collection - is key to preventing exploitation while enabling innovation. The conversation also explores power dynamics in the tech ecosystem, harm liability, and what meaningful reform of data protection law could look like in the age of AI.