WHEN: 26 MAY 2023 (Friday), 14:00-17:00
WHERE: HG-0C29, AURORA, MAIN Building, Vrije University Amsterdam
As we face the era of AI, which is rapidly permeating every aspect of our daily lives, it is undeniable that AI-powered technologies are now at the forefront in changing and shaping human relationships and social interactions—including that of law and society. Technologies such as self-driving vehicles, metaverse, gene editing techniques, blockchain, and chatbots are no longer a fiction that’s only seen in movies but have now become our present reality. While most of these examples are currently in the early stages of development, AI systems have the potential to exponentially advance and shape the norms and values of societies in unprecedented ways.
But how should these emerging AI technologies be developed, used and most importantly, regulated? And how do AI systems impact our society’s judicial system?
Due to the complex nature of AI-technology and the many legal, social and ethical considerations to make, this is an especially important topic to exchange views about. Hence, don’t miss this opportunity to expand your knowledge on a topic that will only become more relevant as time goes on. Register now and be part of an insightful discussion on AI and the future of law!
Augmenting legal analysis with AI
Prof. Thibault Schrepel is currently an associate professor of Law at VU Amsterdam and Faculty Affiliate at Stanford University CodeX Centre. He also hold research and teaching positions at Sciences Po Paris & University Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and is a blockchain expert appointed to the World Economic Forum and the World Bank. Thibault has experience in teaching, research and entrepreneurship at the intersection of law and technology. While he started out in the field of competition law, his recent research has predominantly been focused on blockchain antitrust, computational antitrust and complexity science. Prof. Schrepel is also the author of “Blockchain +Antitrust: The Decentralization Formula” published in 2021 and “Predatory innovation in antitrust law” published in 2018. Moreover, he has published papers at Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Oxford, NYU, Berkely and Georgetown such as the world’s most downloaded antitrust article of 2022 “Complexity-minded Antitrust”.
The incompatibility between legal and computational thinking
Prof. Tina van der Linden is an associate professor of Law at VU Amsterdam, teaching courses about Blockchain and AI on both bachelor and master-level. She started her career as a computer programmer before switching to academia in 1986. Her research addresses the challenges that new technologies, particularly AI and blockchain, present to the law as well as a focus on the regulation of AI. Prof. van der Linden has extensive research and teaching experience in the broad field of Information technology law and is involved in the supervision of many masters and PhD theses.
Don’t believe (all) the hype! A sobering perspective on Law & Tech research
Aviva de Groot (she/her) is a postdoctoral researcher on AI and Human Rights at the Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT). She came to academia with backgrounds in filmmaking, legal aid and privacy & information law, focusing on systemic injustices throughout these careers. In her dissertation entitled ‘Care to explain? A critical epistemic in/justice-based analysis of legal explanation rules and ideals for ‘AI’-infused times, Aviva de Groot argues for a comprehensive legal approach of AI regulation: to understand how the risks, challenges, and pitfalls of AI-driven decision making are not all so novel as they are made out to be but also the logical outcome of our regulatory choices so far.
Moderator, Panel Discussion
Prof. Catrien Bijleveld is a professor of Research Methods in Criminology at VU. In December 2019, she was appointed to the Netherlands and Scientific Council for Government Policy. Since 2014, she has been the director of the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR). In addition, Prof. Bijleveld currently serves as Chair of the steering and evaluation committee for an experiment involving a closed marijuana dispensary chain and as President of the European Society of Criminology.
14:00- 14:15: Welcoming, Introductory Remarks, & Warming up
14:16-14:35: Speaker 1, Thibault Schrepel on ‘Augmenting Legal Analysis with AI’
14:36- 14:40 Short Pause for Reflections
14:41-15:00: Speaker 2, Tina van der Linden on
‘The Incompatibility of Legal and Computational Thinking’
15:01- 15:05 Short Pause for Reflections
15:06- 15:26: Speaker 3, Aviva de Groot on ‘Don’t believe (all) the hype! A sobering perspective on Law & Tech research’
15:26- 15:30 Short Pause for Reflections
15:31- 15:50 Break & Networking*
15:51- 16:45 Moderated Panel Discussion led by Prof. Catrien Bijleveld
16:46- 17:00 Words of Thanks, Handing of Token of Appreciation, Announcement, Concluding Remarks
*Food and drinks will be served.