Academic Writing

Even (Some) Law Firms Think Robots Are The Next Big Thing

Author(s): 
Ryan Calo
Publication Date: 
January 31, 2014
Publication Type: 
Other Writing

I am proud to say that I helped found the Robot Block Party in Silicon Valley. Now in its fifth year, the event brings together industry, academia, and the hobbyist community to demo robots in celebration of National Robotics Week. We held the first one in Paul Brest Hall at Stanford Law School. The second, third, and fourth Robot Block Parties took place nearby at the Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Lab (where Stanford University develops driverless cars). Each event drew at least a thousand visitors. Read more » about Even (Some) Law Firms Think Robots Are The Next Big Thing

What If Your Autonomous Car Keeps Routing You Past Krispy Kreme?

Author(s): 
Patrick Lin
Publication Date: 
January 22, 2014
Publication Type: 
Other Writing

Cross-posted from The Atlantic.

On a future road trip, your robot car decides to take a new route, driving you past a Krispy Kreme Doughnut shop. A pop-up window opens on your car’s display and asks if you’d like to stop at the store. “Don’t mind if I do,” you think to yourself. You press “yes” on the touchscreen, and the autonomous car pulls up to the shop. Read more » about What If Your Autonomous Car Keeps Routing You Past Krispy Kreme?

Promote Transparency, Secure the Internet, and Codify the Reforms

Author(s): 
Michelle Richardson
Publication Date: 
January 16, 2014
Publication Type: 
Other Writing

Cross-posted from Slate.

The president on Friday will give a long-awaited speech addressing what he intends to do about National Security Agency surveillance programs that have come to light since June. According to press reports, his administration is still culling recommendations, and it is unclear whether he will make the most important decision of all: to no longer spy on American citizens without cause.
Read more » about Promote Transparency, Secure the Internet, and Codify the Reforms

They're watching. How can that be a good thing?

Author(s): 
Ryan Calo
Publication Date: 
January 13, 2014
Publication Type: 
Other Writing

Cross-posted from Stanford Magazine.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT ROBOTS? Our fascination with these machines dates back centuries. The ancient Greeks built them. Robots haunted the Industrial Revolution. For a time in the 1980s, the decade that brought us Short Circuit, The Terminator and RoboCop, it seemed that the United States had caught robot fever. Read more » about They're watching. How can that be a good thing?

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