

10:00 am EDT - 11:30 am EDT
Past Event
10:00 am - 11:30 am EDT
1775 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Washington, DC
20036
Emerging technologies have the potential to promote significant change in public health and national security and the economy, particularly in manufacturing. But innovation can pose serious risks and have unintended consequences. Who should manage those risks? Who is responsible for those consequences? What kinds of institutions and policies can be implemented to ensure responsible innovation?
On May 30, the Center for Technology Innovation at Brookings hosted a public forum to discuss the role of social responsibility in the field of technological innovation. A panel of experts—comprised by professor in political science David Guston, former undersecretary of Defense and head of the Institute for Defense Analysis David Chu, and former deputy assistant secretary of State and executive of Calvert Investments Bennett Freeman—shared their perspectives on socially responsible innovation with emphasis on the governance of emerging technologies, the evaluation of research and development programs, and socially responsible investment. Brookings Fellow Walter Valdivia moderated the discussion.
Panelists held as a common premise the fact that it is difficult to predict how emerging technologies will impact society in the future. The inability to predict is however not a reasons for passivity. Action can be taken to develop the social capacities to shape technology in a way that is more sensitive to social needs and public values, and panelists discussed the possibilities and challenges for developing these capacities.
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Tom Wheeler
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Stephanie K. Pell
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Elaine Kamarck
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