Technology is advancing at an unprecedented pace, and the world is becoming increasingly dependent on it, whether for communication or commerce. However, as these advanced technologies become integrated into our daily lives, concerns have arisen about the potential risks and ethical issues they bring. Given the increasing frequency and sophistication of cyber-attacks, governments and organizations need to equip themselves with the necessary tools and strategies to effectively mitigate these risks. In addition, the emergence of the metaverse has the potential to revolutionize the way we interact with the digital world, but also raises questions about the long-term impact it will have on our daily lives. It is therefore important to consider how we can balance the benefits of these new technologies with ethical concerns and ensure that they are developed and used responsibly.
At the Global Female Leaders Summit 2023, we will discuss these issues in depth. Get a sneak peek in this article.
One Robot for Any Task
Keynote Presentation – Tuesday 25th April 2023
How can we accelerate the creation of machines customized to specific tasks? Where are the gaps that we need to address in order to advance the bodies and brains of machines? How can we develop scalable and trustworthy reasoning engines? This keynote highlights recent developments, focusing on computational design and fabrication of custom robots.
Daniela Rus is the Andrew (1956) and Erna Viterbi Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Director of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) at MIT. Prof. Rus’s research interests are in robotics and artificial intelligence. The key focus of her research is to develop the science and engineering of autonomy.
Prof. Rus served as a member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) and on the Defense Innovation Board. She is a senior visiting fellow at MITRE Corporation. She currently serves as a USA expert for Global Partnerships in AI, on the board of trustees of MBZUAI, and on the board of directors of Mass Robotics. She also served as Deputy Dean of Research in the Schwarzman College of Computing at MIT between 2019-2022.
The digitization of practically everything coupled with advances in machine learning, the automation of knowledge work, and advanced robotics promises a future with democratized use of machines and wide-spread use of AI, robots, and customization. While the last 60 years have defined the field of industrial robots and empowered hard bodied robots to execute complex assembly tasks in constrained industrial settings, the next 60 years could be ushering in our time with Pervasive robots that come in a diversity of forms and materials, helping people with physical and cognitive tasks. However, the pervasive use of machines remains a hard problem. How can we accelerate the creation of machines customized to specific tasks? Where are the gaps that we need to address in order to advance the bodies and brains of machines? How can we develop scalable and trustworthy reasoning engines? In this talk I will discuss recent developments in machine learning and robotics, focusing on computational design and fabrication for making custom robots.
Harnessing Technologies to help us Re-Imagine the Growth Ethic
Executive Panel Discussion – Tuesday 25th April 2023
Join this lively conversation about both the socio-technological challenges associated with earning trust in AI and the opportunities that next generation Conversational AI presents to us.
In a world where technology is advancing rapidly, it is more important than ever to understand its potential to help us grow our businesses and reshape our economic landscape. It is also important to ensure that the proper safeguard rails are in place to ensure both sustainable and equitable outcomes. Join our lively conversation about both the socio-technological challenges associated with earning trust in AI and the opportunities that next generation Conversational AI presents to us.
Join our Executive Panel Discussion! We look forward to our panellists:
Phaedra Boinodiris | Consulting Global Leader for Trustworthy AI | IBM | USA
Seda Röder | Founder & Managing Partner | The Mindshift.Global | Austria
Katrin Suder | Senior Advisor, Board Member, Social Entrepreneur | Germany
Moderated by Melinda Crane
A Human-Centric Metaverse: How XR will impact People’s Lives
Spotlight – Tuesday 25th April 2023
Amy Peck is the Founder & CEO of EndeavorXR, a leading global XR strategy & consulting firm. She is one of the world’s foremost experts on immersive technology, the Metaverse, Web 3.0 and Blockchain. She is a recognized futurist and thought leader, and speaks globally on
emerging technology and innovation. She advises Fortune 500 companies, government entities, digital media/production companies and tech start-ups on The Metaverse, Web3, XR strategy, tech-forward digital transformation and insights into the Future of Work.
Amy was recently named one of the Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Tech for 2023 and Top 100 Women of The Future which is also being published as a book and series of NFTs. Amy is an angel investor and Venture Partner at the Capital Region XR Accelerator. Amy sits on the Board of Advisors for multiple companies and is Co-chair of Prospera Women, a global organization supporting female-led start-ups. She works with universities and government agencies advising on the development of innovation hubs, accelerators, and emerging technology programs.
XR technology, also referred to as mixed reality or The Metaverse, is often misunderstood and can even trigger dystopian fears. The world has seen this sector go through numerous hype cycles and troughs. Steadily in the background, the technology, tools, and content that power XR continue to advance, bringing this evolution in computing closer and closer. In this talk, Christina Heller explores a more human centric perspective on how XR can improve people’s lives. With 10 years of experience working across a vast set of verticals and use cases through leading her companies VR Playhouse and Metastage, Christina will share the moments where she feels she has seen the future, and what we can expect as 3D displays become commonplace. Looking at XR breakthrough moments and case studies through a technical and cultural lens will hint at what is yet to come. This presentation will present the biggest challenges both technologically and culturally that XR will need to surpass in order to reach higher levels of adoption.
Megatrend Security – Rethinking the Concept of Corporate Security
Spotlight – Tuesday 25th April 2023
Julia Vincke is a criminologist and senior executive with extensive international expertise and leadership in the field of security. Since 2022 she holds the position as Vice President Security at BASF Group.
Over the past 25 years, she gathered experience in various leadership and management functions within the Lower Saxony Police Force, during foreign assignments as well as on corporate level. During this period, Julia worked for the German Police Project Team (GPPT) in Afghanistan in 2012 as well as for the European Union Border Management Assistance Mission in Libya (EUBAM Libya) in 2014. Since 2015 she has been holding leadership roles in the field of Corporate Security in several commercial enterprises including the retail, automotive and chemical sector. Her main focus is on topic areas such as public security, international security, security strategies, risk management, crisis management and geopolitics.
The past two decades have been described as a, in both, quantity and quality, slowly ascending sequence of global crises, negatively influencing the overall security situation. Arising from current conditions, the question we are facing is how prepared we really are to reliably cope with multiplex challenges of the 21st century. COVID 19, deepened geopolitical conflicts, the threat of global terror, organized crime and the rise of antidemocratic sub-cultures, climate change and resulting natural disasters, environmental crimes and weaponized digital technology are shaking up our global immune system. In metaphorical terms, weakened immune systems are particularly vulnerable, even to minor infections/events. This, on an entrepreneurial level, is further complicated by financial instability, demographic change, skills shortage and new concepts of education, work, and leadership.
Governments, corporates, societies, and many other system-relevant actors, are in demand to withstand those global challenges and turning them into opportunities. This is also true for corporate security organizations, often shaped by conservative thinking and action patterns. Mandated to protect and secure people, assets and reputation, corporate security organizations are caught between traditionally established structures and a world that is characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA). What do corporate security organizations have to do to encounter the much debated new normal and how do they expand their strengths? Without question, confronting the new normal requires comprehensive and holistic strategies, bold ideas, the courage to take a new course and, just as importantly, joint forces. Security can only be understood as a common task for which interdisciplinarity, increased networking, modified recruiting and suitable promotion is key
Female Health Matters ‒ Crash Test Dummies and other Stories
Executive Panel Discussion – Tuesday 25th April 2023
There is more than just the “little difference” between women and men. For a long time, it was believed that cardiovascular diseases mainly affected men. However, heart disease is the most common cause of death among women – and one of the most avoidable. Sex-specific characteristics have a major impact on cardiovascular diseases. Women differ from men in many ways, and their hearts are also anything but the same: on average, women’s hearts are smaller and beat faster. This is especially obvious in the case of heart attacks. Because heart attack is considered typically a man’s disease and women are less likely to describe symptoms less suggestive of a diagnosis of heart attack, women die more often from heart attacks.
Women express the same symptoms of a heart attack in a completely different way. If men describe chest pains radiating into the left arm in a very impressive way, women tend to talk about feeling unwell with dizziness and nausea – although both have chest pains and feel unwell. It is very important to know the gender-specific differences of diseases, otherwise complaints cannot be interpreted correctly and the right diagnosis may not be made.
Unawareness of the differences in symptom presentation can have life-threatening consequences. Women have a much higher risk of not surviving a heart attack than men. Valuable time is lost before women receive adequate medical care. On Average, women arrive at the emergency room half an hour later than men from the onset of symptoms until they are admitted to hospital. This delays the start of treatment, because every minute counts in a heart attack.
Doctors need to be more aware of the small differences between women and men to avoid life-threatening consequences. The good news is that not only doctors but also women can do something for their heart health. Healthy eating, adequate activity, stress reduction and quitting smoking play a key role in women’s heart health.
How are occupant safety in the event of a crash assessed today and what is needed to make it inclusive?
Today, 2023, occupant safety of the occupant of a car is done using a model of an average male.
How did we get there and what are the steps needed to be taken to address the whole adult population in the assessment of vehicle occupant safety? And why is it important (in addition to that women exists)?
These questions will be addressed together with a description of the latest development in the assessment of crash safety. The results of a recent finished EU-funded project, VIRTUAL, that contain both open-source virtual and physical models representing us in the event of a crash, will be presented.
Join our Executive Panel Discussion! We look forward to our panellists:
Jennifer H. Mieres | SVP, Center for Equity of Care, Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer | Northwell Health, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell | USA
Enise Lauterbach | Co-Founder and CEO | LEMOA medical | Germany
Astrid Linder | Professor of Traffic Safety | vti | Sweden
Moderated by Melinda Crane
Jennifer H. Mieres, MD, FACC, MASNC, FAHA
Northwell Health, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, USA
Data, AI & Emerging Tech: Opportunities, Challenges and Pathways
Think Tank – Tuesday 25th April 2023
Anum Malkani has a decade of experience in public policy and business, with a focus on the technology sector. She has worked and studied across 4 continents in diverse geographies, delivering results in challenging political and economic contexts.
Currently, she is Head of Public Policy for Pakistan, Cambodia, and Myanmar at Amazon Web Services (AWS). She works with diverse stakeholders to advise on business and innovation friendly policy and regulatory frameworks, to develop policy positions on emerging issues in the digital sphere, and to design and implement engagement strategies.
Previously, Anum worked in Microsoft, leading a business segment in Pakistan, Lebanon, and Jordan. Later, she managed a Digital Financial Services program for financial inclusion, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Earlier in her career, Anum worked for Deloitte Consulting in the USA. Anum has an MBA from INSEAD, France, and an undergraduate degree in Economics from Claremont McKenna College, USA.
The recent advancement of AI technologies has spurred an information glut. The discourse on AI ranges from excitement about its disruptive potential to fears around machine intelligence and sentience. But AI’s potential for businesses and its ethical concerns lie between these extremes. How can we sift through the hype to make sense of AI’s benefits? How do we wade through the noise to discern its risks?
In this session, we will take stock of AI technologies’ future prospects. We will discuss AI principles and ethics as well as the policy and regulatory landscape that will determine its progress. Finally, we will consider how we, as business leaders, can initiate responsible AI innovation and adoption.
