ETHICS AND TECH CONFERENCE 2025: GOVERNING AI

Join Seattle University’s Technology Ethics Initiative at the third annual Ethics & Tech Conference to explore the evolving legal and policy landscape governing AI.

GOVERNING AI: LAW AND POLICY

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Since its inception in 2023, the Ethics and Tech Conference has been a gathering for thought leaders and industry professionals to engage in meaningful discussions, debates, and networking opportunities. Each year, we tackle pressing issues at the intersection of ethics and technology, from AI’s evolving role in the workforce to its impact on education and healthcare.

In 2025, we turn our focus to the legal and political frameworks shaping AI governance. Join us as experts navigate the complexities of regulation, policy, and ethical responsibility in artificial intelligence.

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MEET THE SPEAKERS

Jai Jaisimha

JAI JAISIMHA

Co-Founder, Transparency Coalition

Jai Jaisimha is a Seattle-based technology entrepreneur with expertise in AI-enabled product development and data science. Jai has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering with a focus on AI from the University of Washington. During his career, Jai has founded or held leadership roles at four start-ups that leveraged AI/Machine Learning to build software applications, including Hitch Works Inc., acquired by Service Now in 2022 and Appnique which developed privacy preserving advertising technology solutions using AI/LLMs. At Microsoft, AOL and RealNetworks, Jai led pioneering initiatives in the digital distribution of content that ensured user privacy was respected and the rights of creators and copyright holders were protected.

SONIA KATYAL

Professor and Associate Dean, University of California Berkeley School of Law

Sonia Katyal is a professor and Associate Dean of Faculty Development and Research at UC Berkeley School of Law. Her research explores the intersection of technology, intellectual property, and civil rights, focusing on privacy, free speech, and discrimination. She has examined topics such as algorithmic transparency, trade secrecy, and the role of technology in shaping gender and cultural property rights. Katyal was appointed to the U.S. Commerce Department’s Digital Economy Board of Advisors as an Affiliate Scholar at Stanford Law’s Center for Internet and Society. She also serves on the Executive Committee for the Berkeley Center for New Media and advises Women in Technology Law.

EMILY MCREYNOLDS

Head of Global AI Strategy, Adobe

Emily McReynolds is the Head of Global AI Strategy at Adobe, with over 15 years of experience in data governance, machine learning, and AI. She specializes in making complex AI concepts accessible and has led initiatives such as The AI Inflection Point: How to Adopt AI Responsibly in Your Organization. Previously, she was the founding program director of the University of Washington’s Tech Policy Lab, where she co-led projects on augmented reality, driverless cars, and AI-driven toys. With a background in technology and policy, she deeply understands AI’s ethical and societal impacts.

TEE SANNON

Technology Policy Program Director at the ACLU of Washington

Tee Sannon is the Technology Policy Program Director at the ACLU of Washington, where she works to defend and promote people's civil liberties in the digital age. She is also a social scientist with a decade of experience conducting research on the social impact of technologies, particularly in the context of historically marginalized groups. Her research has focused on improving privacy, accessibility, and equity on digital platforms through evidence-based recommendations for policy and design. She has published 15+ peer-reviewed articles on these topics in leading social computing venues, including the Association for Computing Machinery’s CHI and CSCW conferences. Tee holds a PhD from Cornell University, where she specialized in human-computer interaction (HCI) and social computing.

Matt Scherer

MATT SCHERER

Senior Policy Counsel for Workers’ Rights and Technology at the Center for Democracy & Technology

Matt Scherer is Senior Policy Counsel for Workers’ Rights and Technology at the Center for Democracy & Technology. He studies how emerging technologies affect workers in the workplace and labor market, including the impacts of emerging AI decision-making, digital surveillance, and automated management technologies on workers' privacy, health, dignity, and autonomy. He works with CDT's Privacy & Data Project to advocate for policies that protect workers’ digital rights and ensure that new technologies benefit and empower workers and consumers.

Bisma Shoaib

BISMA SHOAIB

Attorney, Northwest Region Federal Trade Commission

Bisma Shoaib is an attorney in the Northwest Region of the Federal Trade Commission, specializing in consumer protection and privacy law. She has a background in civil litigation, focusing on healthcare regulation, corporate compliance, and health information privacy. With international experience in technology-related treaties and human rights issues, she is also a Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E) and a Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM). A graduate of Seattle University School of Law, she brings a deep understanding of regulatory and legal challenges in the tech space. While serving as an FTC liaison for this event, her statements are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Commission or any individual Commissioner.

2024 Ethics & Tech Conference

Where AI meets humanity in healthcare: What's next?

The tools of artificial intelligence offer the potential for healthcare to become more effective and equitable. But as we race to embrace these advances, are we truly ensuring that we do no harm? Thought leaders from across disciplines will discuss the complex issues that emerge as we harness AI for health. Join us in an important conversation grounded in Seattle University’s Jesuit tradition of facing challenges with reflection and contemplation.

SESSION VIDEOS

Opening Remarks, Seattle University Provost Shane Martin and Technology Ethics Initiative director Onur Bakiner

The Mind-Body Problem, Christof Koch, moderated by Eric Severson (Philosophy, Seattle University)

Designing the Guardrails, Stephanie Simmons

AI in Clinical Applications, Ian Haydon, Alex John London, and Mjaye Mazwi, moderated by Margaret Chon (School of Law, Seattle University)

Roundtable Discussion, moderated by Seattle University President Eduardo Peñalver

MEET THE SPEAKERS

A photograph of Christof Koch

Christof Koch

Christof Koch, President, Chief Scientific Officer and Meritorious Investigator at the Allen Institute for Brain Science, whose writings and investigations integrate theoretical, computational and experimental neuroscience with philosophy and contemporary trends, in particular artificial intelligence. He is known for believing that the mechanisms behind consciousness will be able to be scientifically explained using currently-available tools of neurobiology, among other theories about the nature of consciousness in the context of networked complexity.

Vin Gupta

Vin Gupta, Critical Care Pulmonologist, Virginia Mason; Chief Medical Officer in Pharmacy, Amazon; Affiliate Assistant Professor, Institute of Health Metrics, University of Washington; and Critical Care Air Transport Physician and Major in the United States Air Force Reserve Medical Corps Sciences, has a multi-faceted perspective on global public health care and critical care response. His systems-oriented experiences give him an interesting perspective on the potential applications of AI in healthcare.

A photograph of Blythe Adamson

Blythe Adamson

Blythe Adamson, Head of Outcomes Research at Flatiron; Founder, Infectious Economics; and Affiliate Professor, UW is a scientist, epidemiologist and health economist using AI to compare drug and policy effectiveness with the goal of accelerating research and improving patient outcomes. Her team has pioneered deep learning language models for data extraction, and she served as lead data scientist in the West Wing of The White House and advised public and private institutions on disease prevention.

Ty Kayam

Ty Kayam, Principal Corporate Counsel for Health and Life Sciences, Microsoft; Adjunct Professor of Law, Seattle University, advises product, engineering and data science teams on legal issues related to the development of AI and other emerging technologies for the health and life sciences industries. She currently holds leadership positions on the Health Information Technology committee of the American Health Law Association and the eHealth, Privacy, and Security group of the American Bar Association.

Mjaye Mazwi

Mjaye Mazwi, Co-Director, Heart Center, Division Head, Cardiac Critical Care Medicine and Professor of Pediatrics at Seattle Children’s Hospital, uses machine learning to computationally model high resolution patient phenotypes and state-based characterizations for critically ill pediatric patients. His work in AI is intimately connected to his patient care.

Jay Nanduri

Jay Nanduri is the CTO and Co-Founder of Truveta.

For 20+ years, Jay Nanduri has been a Microsoft Technical Fellow with over 25 patents. He is committed to structuring health data to better support equitable and innovative healthcare. He strives to use AI creatively to enable Truveta’s large consortium of partners to use data productively.

A photograph of Stephanie Simmons

Stephanie Simmons

Stephanie Simmons draws on her background in law, regulatory compliance, ethical thought and technology as she considers the implications of a robust innovation pipeline merging tech, products, research and design in the fields of health and life sciences. Her group pursues interdisciplinary collaborations that drive real-world impact.

A photograph of Alex London

Alex John London

Alex John London, K&L Gates Professor of Ethics and Computational Technologies, Carnegie Mellon University

An elected fellow of the Hastings Center, Alex John London is co-lead of the K&L Gates Initiative in Ethics and Computational Technologies, Director of the Center for Ethics and Policy, and Chief Ethicist at the Block Center for Technology and Society, all at Carnegie Mellon University. He is also a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Group on Ethics and Governance of AI among other advisory positions.

A photograph of Joanna Black

Joanna Black

Joanna Black is currently general counsel for Madrona Ventures Group. She has worked with public and venture-backed companies in the software, technology, and biotechnology industries for the last 25 years, including as VP of Xcyte Therapies, Inc.

2023 Ethics & Tech Conference

Examining AI Through an Ethical Lens

The focus of the conference, Will Intelligent Machines Prepare the Next Workforce?, exploredthe role of AI in preparing workers for short- and long-term success, the implications for the shifting educational landscape and the impact on the workforce. (Credit: Tara Lee, "Examining AI Through an Ethical Lens," SU Newsroom, June 29, 2023).

PHOTOS

A photo of the Ethics and Tech speakers talking to students

MEET THE SPEAKERS

Blaise Aguera y Arcas

Vice president, Google Research

Father Paolo Benanti

AI ethics advisor to Pope Francis and a professor at Pontificia Universita Gregoriana

Lori Lewis

Operations leader of the Technology Trust Ethics team at Deloitte