This Week In Digital Trust

Feb 24 2025 128 ep. 28 mins 342

This Week In Digital Trust Podcast artwork

Regular conversations about tech policy, privacy, cyber security, AI safety and everything in between. This Week In Digital Trust is hosted by Arjun Ramachandran and Jordan Wilson-Otto, self-described technology enthusiasts with a passion for ensuring the use of technology leads to the best outcomes for humanity. Arjun and Jordan are Principals at elevenM, a specialist AI, privacy, cyber security and data governance consultancy in Australia. Arjun is a strategic communications expert and former journalist. Jordan is an expert in privacy regulation, policy development and program management.

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#126 Hard pivot - world leaders walk away from AI safety

Feb 24 2025 22 mins

This week we analyse what appears to be a global shift in sentiment away from AI safety.Our discussion is triggered by the AI Action Summit in Paris, where world leaders overtly sought to minimise focus on AI risks and regulation in favour of an acceleration agenda.Links:AI Action Summit (Wikipedia) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AI_Action_SummitReport on AI Action Summit (Politico)

#125 DeepSeek - Chill out and stay vigilant

Feb 10 2025 28 mins

This week we dive into the hype and fear around DeepSeek, the Chinese AI start-up taking the tech world by storm.We break down the apparent concerns driving the collective freakout over the app, which include bans by various national governments.We also explore the broader takeaways for Australia's AI capability and ecosystem and the responsible AI movement. Links:DeepSeek FAQ

#124 Unfriending the truth - Behind Meta's decision to end fact-checking

Jan 27 2025 28 mins

We're back in 2025. In this episode we break down Meta's decision to cease factchecking and permit dehumanising speech on its platforms. We explore the likely motivations and impacts of these changes, and the broader takeaways for Australia. Links: Article about Meta's factchecking changes (Reuters) https://www.reuters.com/technology/meta-ends-third-party-fact-checking

#123 Good tech tidings - an optimistic recap of 2024

Dec 16 2024 26 mins

For our final episode of 2024, we take an optimistic look at the year that was (after a bit of a throat clearing on the things that bugged us), and what we're looking forward to in 2025. Our conversation covers developments in AI, privacy reform, social media and the growing digital rights community in Australia. We'll be taking a break over the summer holidays and will be back in

#122 Big ban theory - Why Australia’s social media ban for kids is raising eyebrows

Nov 25 2024 26 mins

This week we discuss the Australian Government's plan to make 16 the minimum age to access social media. The plan has broad political support and resonates with many concerned parents, but there's more to it than meets the eye. We discuss the specifics of how the ban will be implemented (with key elements not yet solved and potentially problematic), and interrogate the underlying p

#121 Putting the "I" in AI - How your personal information powers artificial intelligence

Nov 11 2024 30 mins

Awareness is growing that the power of many AI tools derives from the fact that they are trained on our personal information. We discuss how regulators (like Australia's OAIC) are now stepping up their expectations that privacy obligations be adhered to by developers and deployers of AI. We also explore the case study of Australian start-up harrison.ai - whose AI tool was trained o

#120 The auction of you - How your data is sold daily to the highest bidder

Oct 28 2024 28 mins

This week on the podcast, our eyes are opened to a remarkable online advertising practice called "real-time bidding". RTB is where an auction involving the sensitive information of online users is initiated as they load up a web page, with advertisers bidding for the space on the page. Recent reports from Reset.Tech Australia and the Irish Council of Civil Liberties reveal the prac

#119 Not just another AI safety standard

Oct 14 2024 27 mins

This week on the podcast, we're looking at a promising development in helping Australian organisations manage AI risks. The Australian Government has released its Voluntary AI Safety Standard, as part of its safe and responsible AI agenda. The Standard features 10 guardrails as a practical blueprint for how Australian organisations can safely and responsibly use and innovate with A

#118 Still waiting for Terminator - how the debate on existential AI risk has shifted

Sep 30 2024 32 mins

This week on the podcast, we discuss how the conversation about AI risks seems to be shifting away from the catastrophic, existential, wiping-out-of-humanity type of scenarios. While the X-risk proponents are still out there, media coverage, regulators and the public at large seem to be homing in on more immediate and tangible AI concerns like discrimination, privacy violations, an

#117 A reform story in two tranches - our reaction to new privacy laws

Sep 17 2024 31 mins

After five years of consultation on privacy reforms, the Federal Government has finally introduced legislation into the parliament. Its been billed by the Attorney General as the "first tranche" and a "first step", with promises of more reforms to come. In this episode, we share our reaction to the bill and break down what's in and what's been left for a