Artificial intelligence is already changing our world. But is it advancing humanity or putting our fundamental rights at risk?

Recorded at the United Nations ahead of the General Assembly, this episode of AI Unhinged brings together host Dr. Calvin Lawrence and Dr. Erica George, a Boston University School of Law professor and human rights scholar, for a powerful conversation about AI, corporate accountability, racial bias, and the future of human dignity.

Dr. George makes a bold argument: AI is already a human rights issue.

From facial recognition and predictive policing to hiring discrimination, autonomous weapons, and the growing threat of job displacement, the consequences of artificial intelligence are not just theoretical. They're affecting real people and real communities today.

But who should be responsible when AI causes harm? The developers? The executives? The corporations profiting from the technology? Or the organizations deploying it?

Dr. Lawrence brings decades of experience designing and developing AI systems to a discussion that challenges the idea that technological progress should come at any cost.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why AI is already a human rights concern
• Who should be legally accountable when AI causes harm
• How historical racism and discrimination can become embedded in AI systems
• The tension between corporate profits and ethical responsibility
• Why AI-driven job displacement threatens economic security
• Whether artificial intelligence needs its own Bill of Rights
• The importance of transparency, explainability, and fairness
• Why the biggest AI threat may not be killer robots, but the gradual erosion of humanity
• Why Black communities must move beyond consuming AI and start shaping its future

One of the most powerful takeaways?

Don't believe the hype. Don't sit on the sidelines. And don't settle for being a consumer of technology when you can help shape what comes next.

This isn't just a conversation about artificial intelligence. It's about power, responsibility, and who gets to benefit from the future we're creating.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Dr. Erica George is a professor at Boston University School of Law and the author of Incorporating Rights: Strategies to Advance Corporate Accountability. Her work explores business, human rights, corporate responsibility, and the legal implications of emerging technologies.

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Should corporations be held legally responsible when their AI systems violate human rights? And should there be limits on what AI companies are allowed to build?

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What happens when police departments invest millions in artificial intelligence systems that may not actually understand the communities they're supposed to protect?

In Part 2 of this AI Unhinged conversation, Dr. Calvin Lawrence continues his discussion with Keith Meadows, former Chief of Police for the City of South Fulton, about the future of AI in law enforcement and the consequences of getting it wrong.

Drawing from their experience working together on policing technology, they examine why many predictive policing systems rely on oversimplified models of criminal behavior, how those systems can contribute to over-policing, and why human intelligence should never be replaced by an algorithm's recommendation.

Chief Meadows reveals how his approach to crime data often challenged the recommendations of automated systems and why understanding the circumstances behind a crime matters more than simply counting incidents on a map.

The conversation also exposes a growing challenge within the technology industry: companies marketing AI solutions that may not deliver what they promise, police departments purchasing systems without fully understanding them, and leaders failing to establish the policies and training necessary for responsible implementation.

But the discussion doesn't stop at policing.

Dr. Lawrence and Chief Meadows explore the future of data integration, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and the growing demand for technology that can analyze increasingly complex information.

The question is no longer just what AI can do. It's what we should allow it to do, who gets to make those decisions, and what happens when those decisions are wrong.

Listen to Episode 9 of AI Unhinged as two professionals with firsthand experience developing and implementing policing technology challenge the industry to think beyond algorithms, profits, and promises.

This is Part 2 of the two-part conversation with former Police Chief Keith Meadows. Listen to Part 1 for their discussion on facial recognition, predictive policing, racial bias, and accountability.

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AI is changing Policing. Are we Ready?

Artificial intelligence is changing the way police investigate crimes, identify suspects, and decide where to deploy officers. But when technology starts influencing who gets investigated, who gets arrested, and which communities receive the most police attention, who is responsible for making sure it gets things right?

In Part 1 of this two-part AI Unhinged conversation, Dr. Calvin Lawrence sits down with Keith Meadows, former Chief of Police for the City of South Fulton, whose 40-year law enforcement career includes three decades with the Atlanta Police Department.

Having worked together on technology initiatives involving law enforcement, Dr. Lawrence and Chief Meadows bring two perspectives to the same conversation: the engineer building AI solutions and the police leader responsible for how those solutions are used in real communities.

They explore the promises and dangers of facial recognition, predictive policing, behavioral profiling, and the growing reliance on artificial intelligence in criminal investigations.

Chief Meadows shares his experience leading police departments, his approach to community policing, and why technology should never replace human judgment. The conversation also revisits the wrongful arrest of Robert Williams and examines what happens when an algorithm's recommendation becomes the foundation for a police investigation.

Can AI help officers solve crimes faster without reinforcing racial bias? Can predictive policing improve public safety without over-policing already vulnerable communities? And how do we hold both technology companies and law enforcement accountable?

The technology may be powerful, but the responsibility is still human.

Listen to Episode 8 of AI Unhinged, Part 1 of this two-part conversation, as Dr. Lawrence and Chief Meadows examine the future of policing in an AI-driven world.

Subscribe to AI Unhinged and stay tuned for Part 2.

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What happens when artificial intelligence identifies you as a criminal, and the police believe the computer instead of the evidence?

In this powerful episode of AI Unhinged, Dr. Calvin Lawrence sits down with Robert Williams, a Detroit-area father whose life was turned upside down after facial recognition technology incorrectly identified him as a suspect in a crime he did not commit.

Williams shares his experience of being arrested in front of his family, spending time in detention, and fighting to clear his name. He also opens up about the emotional impact on his young daughter, the financial burden of defending himself, and the frustrating reality of trying to hold a system accountable for its mistakes.

Drawing on his experience developing AI systems and working with law enforcement, Dr. Lawrence breaks down how facial recognition technology works, why algorithmic bias disproportionately affects Black communities, and how dangerous it becomes when investigators treat technology as unquestionable evidence.

Together, they confront difficult questions about racial bias, policing, corporate responsibility, and the human cost of technological innovation without proper safeguards.

This isn't a hypothetical conversation about what AI might do someday. It's a firsthand account of what has already happened.

And as artificial intelligence becomes increasingly embedded in law enforcement, Robert Williams has a warning everyone needs to hear: It could happen to you.

Listen to AI Unhinged and discover why the future of AI accountability is about much more than technology. It's about people.

LEARN MORE ABOUT DR. LAWRENCE: calvindlawrence.com

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DeKalb County has invested millions of dollars into a new Real-Time Crime Center and expanded Flock Safety technology across the county, with the goal of using cameras, license plate readers, data analytics, drones, and artificial intelligence to improve public safety. But does more surveillance automatically mean a safer community?

In this episode of AI Unhinged, the conversation gets personal.

Dr. Calvin Lawrence, artificial intelligence expert and former CTO of Ethical and Responsible AI and Smart Cities at IBM, joins the discussion to break down what can happen when AI enters the world of policing. Drawing from his research into AI, surveillance, and law enforcement systems, Dr. Lawrence explains how historical policing data can become the foundation for new algorithms and why existing bias can potentially be amplified rather than eliminated.

The episode explores some difficult questions:

How does AI actually work inside a Real-Time Crime Center?

Can increased surveillance create a policing feedback loop where communities that are already heavily policed continue generating the data that tells algorithms to police them even more?

What happens when a license plate is misread, a watchlist is outdated, or an AI system identifies the wrong vehicle?

Should an AI alert ever be enough for police to stop, pursue, search, or arrest someone, or should it only be treated as an investigative lead that requires independent verification?

Who has access to the data being collected, how long is it retained, and can information originally gathered for one purpose eventually be used for something entirely different?

And perhaps most importantly, who is responsible when the technology gets it wrong?

Dr. Lawrence argues that AI can be a valuable tool for helping law enforcement investigate and solve crimes, but technology alone cannot replace transparency, independent oversight, accountability, human judgment, and protections for the civil rights of the people being monitored.

This is not simply a conversation about whether AI is good or bad.

It is a conversation about what happens when artificial intelligence moves out of our phones and computer screens and begins influencing decisions that can have real consequences in the physical world.

If AI is going to help keep communities safe, who is making sure the AI itself is safe?

LEARN MORE ABOUT DR. LAWRENCE: calvindlawrence.com

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What if the video games your child spends hours playing aren't just entertainment—but the beginning of a real skill set, career, or even an industry they could help build?

In this episode of AI Unhinged, Dr. Lawrence sits down with Titus Walker, founder and CEO of the Ultimate End Gamers League (UEL), for a conversation about gaming, artificial intelligence, education, and the next generation.

They challenge the idea that gaming is simply a distraction and explore the skills gamers are developing every day—from pattern recognition and strategy to spatial awareness, memorization, problem-solving, and adaptability. But the conversation goes much deeper than gaming.

What happens when young people move from being consumers of technology to becoming its creators, builders, and owners? Are traditional STEM programs actually meeting kids where they are? And if AI and gaming are shaping the future, who gets to build that future?

The conversation also tackles the concerns parents have about gaming, including online safety, predators, Roblox, screen time, and the responsibility adults have to understand the digital worlds their children already inhabit.

This isn't a conversation about getting kids to stop playing games.

It's about asking what becomes possible when we stop dismissing what they love—and start helping them build something with it.

LEARN MORE ABOUT DR. LAWRENCE: calvindlawrence.com

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This week on AI UNHINGED, the questions are rapid-fire, but the answers go much deeper.

What’s the biggest lie we’re telling ourselves about AI? Are some of today’s so-called “AI experts” really experts—or just selling information anyone could get from ChatGPT? And while millions of people are learning how to use AI, who is actually learning how to build it, own it, and profit from it?

Dr. Lawrence gets candid about what AI could mean for Black America, the growing digital wealth gap, and why simply teaching people how to prompt may not be enough. The conversation explores the difference between being an AI consumer, user, creator, and builder—and why that distinction could determine who benefits from the next technological shift.

The episode also gets into education and a troubling question: What happens when some children are encouraged to rely on AI at an early age while others are being taught critical thinking, coding, and how the technology actually works?

From jobs and economic inequality to algorithmic discrimination, civil rights, policing, surveillance, and privacy, this conversation asks the questions that often get left out of the AI hype.

And finally: Could AI actually kill us—or are we so focused on a future AI apocalypse that we’re ignoring the harm AI can cause people today?

No rehearsed answers. No safe talking points.

Just an unfiltered conversation about who AI is really being built for—and what we need to do before the gap gets even wider.

This is AI UNHINGED.

Video Credit Dekalb County Gov: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ-249X-iWc

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Can corporations be trusted to fix AI bias if there’s no money in fixing it?

In this episode of AI Unhinged, Dr. Calvin D. Lawrence sits down with Dr. Seth Dobrin for a candid conversation about what actually drives responsible artificial intelligence inside corporate America.

Dr. Lawrence introduces his “three R’s”: revenue, reputation, and regulation. His argument is simple: companies are far more likely to take AI safety seriously when ignoring it threatens their profits, damages their reputation, or puts them at regulatory risk.

But Dr. Dobrin pushes the conversation further.

They explore why responsible AI can itself become a business advantage, how privacy and consent can change the relationship between companies and consumers, and why corporations have a financial responsibility to think about both the opportunities and the risks created by AI.

The discussion then moves into one of the most complicated questions in artificial intelligence:

Who gets to decide what “bias” actually means?

When global AI models are trained across cultures, whose values should determine what gets removed, corrected, or labeled harmful? And could attempts to make AI “safe” unintentionally impose one culture’s values on the rest of the world?

From the EU AI Act and AI regulation to large language models, corporate responsibility, cultural bias, privacy, and what Dr. Dobrin calls technological colonialism, this conversation asks whether we can build responsible AI without slowing innovation — and who ultimately gets to define what responsible even means.

LEARN MORE ABOUT DR. LAWRENCE: calvindlawrence.com

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