Ruha Benjamin studies the social dimensions of science, technology, and medicine. In books like “Race After Technology”, and “People’s Science”, Benjamin examines how racial inequality plays out in every corner of civic, scientific, and social life. Meredith Whittaker co-founded the AI Now Institute, a
research center examining the social implications of artificial intelligence in criminal justice, law enforcement, housing, and education.
On June 1, 2020, Ruha Benjamin and Meredith Whittaker spoke via video conference. The two talked about biases built into every day technologies, how COVID-19 disproportionately harms marginalized communities, and ethical concerns over the increased power tech elites now have over our educational systems.