Baylor’s Global Business Forum Addresses What Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk Call Humanity’s “Biggest Existential Threat”
Media Contact: Eric M. Eckert, 254-710-1964
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WACO, Texas (Feb. 8, 2018) – Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business will host its 12th annual Global Business Forum, “The Automated World: Artificial Intelligence and Robots,” March 12-16, in the Paul L. Foster Campus for Business and Innovation, 1621 S. Third St.
“This is a major educational opportunity for our faculty and students and for the general public,” said Steve Gardner, Ph.D., The Herman Brown Endowed Chair in Economics and director of the McBride Center for International Business at Baylor. “We’ve all heard of artificial intelligence, but most of us know very little about how it works, how far it has already developed and how far it may develop in the near future.”
The forum, hosted by Baylor and the McBride Center, assembles specialists from the academic, business and public policy communities to explore relevant issues concerning the world economy. This year’s speakers are men and women from around the globe who focus on technology and its increasing role in their fields.
2018 Schedule
• 3:30 p.m. March 12, Foster 143/144: Film and Discussion: Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and the Digital Future – Free and open to the public.
• 6 p.m. March 14, Foster 250: Keynote dinner and presentation with Darrell M. West, Ph.D., vice president and director of governance studies and founding director of the Center for Technology Innovation at the Brookings Institution – Registration is required.
• 9:30 a.m. March 15, Foster 143/144: Presentation: New Technologies in Health Care – Free and open to the public.
• 11 a.m. March 15, Foster 143/144: Presentation: Robotics and Autonomous Vehicles – Free and open to the public.
• 12:30 p.m. March 15, Foster 250: Keynote luncheon and presentation with Michael E. Stewart, founder, chairman and CEO of Lucid – Registration is required.
• 2 p.m. March 15, Foster 143/144: Presentation: Technology in a Changing Global Society – Free and open to the public.
• 3:30 p.m. March 15, Foster 143/144: Presentation: Technology in International Trade – Free and open to the public.
• 2 p.m. March 16, Foster 143/144: Global Issues Challenge, a student competition organized by the group “Global Business Connect.” Each contestant will present a proposal and marketing plan for a new product that utilizes artificial intelligence. These will be judged by an expert panel, and the winners will receive cash prizes and trophies.
“On the positive side, artificial intelligence has the potential to address problems in health care, education and public safety,” Gardner said. “PwC, a multinational professional services network headquartered in London, estimates that it could contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy in 2030.”
“On the other hand, AI and robotics will take over many of the jobs that presently are performed by humans, and will create new job opportunities – for those with the right skills – that we haven’t even imagined,” Gardner added. “The new technologies also will have an important impact on national security. Eric Schmidt warns that the U.S. should take seriously China’s plan to become the global leader in AI by 2030, and Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking suggest that AI may be humanity’s ‘biggest existential threat.’”
The McBride Center for International Business was established in 1992 with the support of a generous endowment. Several years later, Terry Maness, D.B.A., dean of the Hankamer School of Business, suggested an annual Spring Global Business Forum to complement the Fall Business Ethics Forums.
The forum has since explored a wide variety of topics, including the future of Europe (2017), Middle Eastern trade and development (2016), African development (2013), women in business (2012), international trade in the Texas economy (2007), free trade in the Americas (2005) and others. The McBride Center works in partnership with the World Affairs Council of Dallas and Fort Worth and the North Texas District Export Council, a unit of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
For more information and to sign up for the event, visit the Baylor’s Global Business Forum website.
by Brooke Battersby, student newswriter, (254) 710-6805
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 17,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.
ABOUT HANKAMER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business provides a rigorous academic experience, consisting of classroom and hands-on learning, guided by Christian commitment and a global perspective. Recognized nationally for several programs, including Entrepreneurship and Accounting, the school offers 24 undergraduate and 13 graduate areas of study. Visit www.baylor.edu/business and follow on Twitter at twitter.com/Baylor_Business.