Earth Species Project, Katie Zacarian & Sara Keen

June 3 2023, 16:00 BST/ 11:00 EDT/ 08:00 PST

AI to Unlock Interspecies Communication

The exponential developments we are seeing in the field of AI and, in particular, large language models, such as GPT-4, offer the potential to transform our world. Earth Species Project is a non-profit research lab focused on using the power of AI to decode non-human communication. From beluga whales to zebra finches, the ESP team is working closely with scientists to build machine learning models that will advance our ability to find patterns and meaning in the communications of other species, with the ultimate goal of transforming our relationship with the rest of nature.
Join CEO Katie Zacarian and Senior AI Research Scientist Sara Keen as they explore some of the latest developments in AI, unpack key steps on ESP’s technical roadmap toward decode, and delve into some of the successes and ongoing challenges inherent in using these technologies to expand our understanding of the non-human world.

Katie Zacarian (CEO & Co-founder)

Katie is a product expert and conservationist focused on biodiversity. As one of Facebook’s earliest employees in New York, she launched many of the site’s foundational elements. Since then, Katie has created technology solutions for the front lines of conservation biology including wildlife veterinarians, biologists, and park rangers. In 2019, she was honored with the Next Generation Conservationist Award by The International Seakeepers Society for her work in conversation technology and public education.

Sara Keen (Senior Research Scientist, Behavioral Ecology & AI)

Sara is a behavioral ecologist and electrical engineer specializing in acoustics, signal processing, machine learning, and the ecology of animal signals and societies. She received a PhD in Neurobiology and Behavior from Cornell University in 2020. Prior to joining Earth Species Project she worked in acoustic research labs at the National University of Singapore and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and was a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford. Her work aims to advance academic research and conservation while also encouraging joyful exploration and appreciation of our world.

A recording of the session hosted on Zoom can be viewed below

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