Artificial intelligence

Anna Jahn on Why Universities Need to Stop Policing AI | The Globe and Mail

keith.baybayon@mcgill.ca — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 20:48:47 +0000

July 26, 2026 | Anna Jahn argues in a Globe and Mail op-ed that Canadian universities are failing students by treating AI as a cheating problem rather than a defining redesign challenge. She calls for a deliberate split between "cloister" courses that shield deep learning from AI and "starship" courses that teach students to use the most capable systems well. Without broader institutional leadership, Jahn warns, only wealthy universities will make the shift, turning deep thinking into "a luxury good."

Nicholas King Co-Authors BMJ Article on AI as a Commercial Determinant of Health

keith.baybayon@mcgill.ca — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 20:42:16 +0000

July 21, 2026 | Nicholas King has co-authored a new BMJ article, "Artificial intelligence as a new commercial determinant of health," led by Itai Bavli (UBC). The paper proposes a new analytical framework to help identify how commercial actors are using AI to shape health behaviours and the flow of health information. The authors argue that AI is making commercial influence more targeted and harder to detect, from personalised chatbots to algorithm-driven social media feeds.

New Report: Canada and the Future of AI for Inclusive Prosperity

keith.baybayon@mcgill.ca — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 16:45:04 +0000

April 22, 2026 | The Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy has co-published a new summary report, Canada and the Future of AI for Inclusive Prosperity, with Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Expert Group on Canada and the Future of Development Cooperation. Drawing on a February 2026 roundtable of 19 Canadian and international experts, the report calls on Canada to adopt a more strategic and coherent approach to AI.

Taylor Owen on Europe's Strategic AI Shift Amid Geopolitical Fractures

pinaki.siwach@mcgill.ca — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 14:52:01 +0000

February 12, 2025 | Professor Taylor Owen writes about the "vibe-shift" of AI as he comes back from the Paris AI Action Summit. Owen explains how the governments are pivoting from regulating AI risks to aggressively pursuing foreign direct investment, and Europe faces a new era of AI adoption.

Let’s face the facts: To ensure our digital rights, we must hit pause on facial-recognition technology | The Globe and Mail

kunal.rakshit@mail.mcgill.ca — Thu, 20 Feb 2020 15:48:32 +0000

February 14, 2020 |Rapid advances in facial-recognition technology have the potential for vast social consequences. In response to the scale and speed of these developments and the clear potential for harm, a movement has emerged to ban facial recognition. In this op-ed, Max Bell School professor Taylor Owen and Nasma Ahmed call for the need to move ahead with caution and deliberation, highlighting the urgency for regulatory frameworks.