Amba Kak

Executive Director

AI Now Institute

Artificial Intelligence

Cybersecurity

GovTech & Public Sector

About Me

Amba Kak is a leading technology policy strategist and researcher with over a decade of experience working in multiple regions and in roles across government, academia, and the nonprofit sector. Amba serves as Executive Director of AI Now. Previously, Amba was Senior Advisor on AI at the Federal Trade Commission. She served as Global Policy Advisor at Mozilla. She also served on the Board of Directors for the Signal Foundation and the Program Committee for the Board of Directors for the Mozilla Foundation. In 2024 TIME magazine listed Kak among 100 most influential people in AI.

Hear My Insights

All-You-Can-Eat: Can You Balance AI’s Appetite for Data & Privacy?

The data privacy diet is a fluctuating one, that varies across time, regions, and adapts to (tech) disruptions. Data has proven to be one of our most valuable assets today – one whose protection varies from a legislation to another. But as regulations grow stricter, a potential data wall might emerge, threatening smaller startups' competitiveness and raising questions about shifting focus to application layers rather than LLMs. From the user perspective, building ethical AI is crucial, as current models may pose significant dangers. Understanding the origins of training data is equally important—where this data comes from directly impacts individual privacy rights. Parallels with the social media industry and its challenges around privacy offer interesting lessons. How can we reconcile increasingly strict privacy regulations with data-hungry business models while avoiding past pitfalls?

The Algorithmic Republic: Can Democracy Survive Artificial Intelligence?

As AI swiftly reshapes our world, democracies find themselves on shifting ground. This session confronts AI not just as a powerful tool, but as a lever of immense influence, often operating beyond democratic oversight. In a world increasingly defined by algorithms, how do we protect the very fabric of trust in information and maintain control over our digital lives? What fundamental questions must we ask about AI's role in governance and its ultimate impact on the future of democratic institutions?