Artificial Intelligence:Fact, Fiction and the Re-imagination of Humanity

The term Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been in use since the 1950s, referring to the ability of machines to simulate or augment human intelligence. Notions of AI have long since captured our collective imagination in science fiction. From 2001: A Space Odyssey’s Hal 9000 (the original Siri/Google Home/Alexa) to the sentient humanoids of Blade Runner and Star Trek, we have developed utopic, dystopic and fantastical notions of AI’s potential. But how does AI work in the real world and how does it differ from that of science fiction lore? You might be surprised at just how many ways you interact with AI each and every day. In the coming years, new developments in AI will continue to change the way we all live, work and play. Please join our panel for an engaging discussion on Artificial Intelligence and its broad-reaching impact on the future of humanity.

PANELISTS:

Mary Lou Ackerman, VP of Innovation and Digital Health with SE Health
Adriana Ieraci, Innovation Founder, Lecturer and Robotics Community Organizer
Rosalie Wang, AI and Robotics in Rehabilitation Researcher

MODERATOR:
Matt McPherson, Entrepreneur, Lecturer & Human-Machine Interface Boundary-Pusher 

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BIOGRAPHIES:

Mary Lou Ackerman BScN, MBA
Mary Lou Ackerman is Vice President of Innovation and Digital Health with SE Health. Mary Lou is a founding member of SONSIEL (Society of Nursing Scientist, Innovator, and Entrepreneur Leaders) and an active member of CHIEF (Canada’s Health Informatics Executive Forum) with Digital Health Canada. Her background is extensive – she has led the development and implementation of many business transformation projects, innovations and partnerships. Mary Lou joined Saint Elizabeth in 1987 as a visiting nurse, and she has augmented her clinical background with a graduate business degree and significant experience with health informatics and technologies. Mary Lou has a passion for community health care, combined with a desire to advance care, creating innovative service models supported by digital health technologies, to create a future that will provide a personalized, accessible, meaningful health experience for individuals, their families and the service providers that support them.

Adriana Ieraci, M.Eng.
Adriana Ieraci is the founder and CEO of Conveyor Built, a service design and innovation skills firm focused on the application of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics technologies. She is a human-centred design, design thinking and technology entrepreneurship lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine, and the Faculty of Information, University of Toronto. Adriana’s passion for technological literacy and open innovation inspired her to start the GYBO Robotics Network, a network of over 850 roboticists and robot enthusiasts in southern Ontario. She is a member of the board of the Parametric Human Project. Adriana has a Masters of Engineering from the University of Toronto.

Rosalie Wang, PhD, OT Reg. (Ont.)
Rosalie Wang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto. She is an Affiliate Scientist at Toronto Rehabilitation Institute and a member of their AI and Robotics in Rehabilitation research team. Dr. Wang’s research focuses on developing and implementing technology to enable daily activity participation and social inclusion of seniors. Her doctoral research examined the application of advanced powered wheelchair technologies for seniors with complex physical and cognitive impairments. She is leading research in robotics for post-stroke rehabilitation and on the use of information and communication technologies by seniors with cognitive impairments. As an AGE-WELL investigator she leads a national project on enhancing equitable access to assistive technologies.

Matt McPherson, B.Sc. (Hons), MISt.
Matt McPherson is a tech entrepreneur and operator, having built companies in multiple business sectors, including healthcare, developer tools and artificial intelligence. He is a co-inventor of innovative products and has filed patents in the US, Canada, Japan and the EU, and authored research and academic papers on wide range of topics. He is a passionate advocate for advancing the human-machine interface and has been a proponent of the transformative potential of virtual / augmented reality interfaces since the early ‘90s. He has a B.Sc. (Hons) in Psychology from Queen’s University and a Master of Information from the University of Toronto, where he occasionally teaches a popular course in tech entrepreneurship.