AI for Social Impact

Recent years have seen AI successfully applied to societal challenge problems. Indeed, recognizing the potential of AI for tremendous social impact in the future, “AI for social impact” is growing as a subdiscipline within AI. In this course, we will discuss successful case studies of use of AI for public health, environmental sustainability, public safety and public welfare. Simultaneously, we will discuss key foundations of the area of AI for social impact. To that end, among other topics, we will focus on challenges in AI for Social Impact, what makes projects successful, how to investigate project impact in the field and ethical considerations for such projects. A key part of this course will be AI4SI projects with non-profits.
Recommended Prep: Students must have adequate background in AI, such as CS 181 or 182 or equivalent introductory courses. Students who have previous experience in AI for social impact, e.g., interdisciplinary projects that considered direct societal applications, will be given priority.