SILS: A.I. for Social Good

Today, artificial intelligence (A.I.) imposes far reaching – and often, undetected – effects on nearly every aspect of our lives. As diverse applications of A.I. continue to multiply, an open question remains: How can A.I. be used for good? One might look to a myriad of social impact applications of A.I. for initial answers to that question. From tracking diseases and predicting natural disasters, to helping the visually impaired to navigate their surroundings and countering human biases, we observe that A.I. has the potential to help tackle some of our most challenging social problems.

On 16 February, from 8:30-9:30 a.m. HKT, join us for Social Impact Leadership Series: A.I. for Social Good, an event presented under The Hong Kong Jockey Club Programme on Social Innovation. The event will feature a presentation from Chicago Booth Professor Sendhil Mullainathan, a leading researcher and academic thought leader on social and public sector applications of A.I., who will discuss how social sector leaders might use A.I. to advance the impact of their work.

Practicing physician Dr. Paul Lee will then speak to this topic from a local lens by sharing his experience with his healthcare platform startup, Tree3 Health. Powered by A.I., this platform offers a mobile-based solution to understand the health status of users and connect them with healthcare services in a timely and cost-effective way.

Event schedule (Hong Kong time)

8:30 a.m. Presentation by Chicago Booth Professor Sendhil Mullainathan

9:00 a.m. Case sharing by Dr. Paul Lee

9:15 a.m. Q&A session

9:30 a.m. Wrap-up and close of event

About the speakers

Sendhil Mullainathan, Roman Family University Professor of Computation and Behavioral Science, University of Chicago Booth School of Business

Professor Sendhil Mullainathan’s current research uses machine learning to understand complex problems in human behavior, social policy, and especially medicine, where computational techniques have the potential to uncover biomedical insights from large-scale health data. Mullainathan recently co-authored Scarcity: Why Having too Little Means so Much and writes regularly for the New York Times. Additionally, his research has appeared in a variety of publications including the Quarterly Journal of Economics, Science, American Economic Review, Psychological Science, the British Medical Journal, and Management Science.

Mullainathan helped co-found a non-profit to apply behavioral science (ideas42), co-founded a center to promote the use of randomized control trials in development (the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab), serves on the board of the MacArthur Foundation, has worked in government in various roles, is affiliated with the NBER and BREAD, and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Mullainathan is a recipient of the MacArthur “Genius Grant,” has been designated a “Young Global Leader” by the World Economic Forum, was labeled a “Top 100 Thinker” by Foreign Policy Magazine, and was named to the “Smart List: 50 people who will change the world” by Wired Magazine (UK).

Paul Lee, Convenor & Chief Executive Director, Association of Doctors for Social Responsibility; Co-Founder & COO, Tree3 Health

Dr. Paul Lee is a practicing physician and the cofounder of the health tech startup, Tree3 Health – a mobile-based solution to harness data on smartphones to uncover the health risks of users with its analytical engine, and connect the users with healthcare services in an alternative home-based virtual clinic model.

Paul is also the founder of a local medical charity, Association of Doctors for Social Responsibility, that serves over 10,000 underprivileged citizens in Hong Kong with public health campaigns and pro-bono medical services with a team of more than 100 healthcare professionals.

About the Hong Kong Jockey Club Programme on Social Innovation

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Programme on Social Innovation provides resources and programs to help the city’s NGOs, nonprofit leaders, and social entrepreneurs do their best work. Operated by the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, the Programme offers a range of opportunities, including scholarships, social entrepreneurship workshops, and trainings for NGO boards of directors and board members.