From ChatGPT to DALL-E: What is Generative AI and How Does it Affect Us?

in the series
AI in Education: Promises and Pitfalls

Vered Schwartz, Computer Science
Coach House, Green College, UBC and livestreamed
A reception follows this event

Generative AI tools such as DALLE-2 and ChatGPT allow us to create realistic images and write human-like text. These tools have become popular, reaching millions of users across the globe. The diverse range of capabilities of generative AI, from conversing and crafting fluent essays, through creating and editing photos, to coding and composing poetry, holds great promise for a variety of fields, including education, research, healthcare, industry and society at large. At the same time, it also raises concerns. In this talk, Vered Schwartz will debunk the magic behind generative AI tools and explain how they work. We will discuss their applications, limitations and potential risks.

Vered Shwartz is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at UBC and a CIFAR AI Chair at the Vector Institute. Her research is concerned with natural language processing, with the fundamental goal of building computer programs that can interact with people in natural languages. In her work, she is teaching machines to apply human-like common-sense reasoning which is required to resolve ambiguities and interpret underspecified language. Before joining UBC, Vered completed her PhD in Computer Science at Bar-Ilan University and was a postdoctoral researcher at the Allen Institute for AI and the University of Washington.