Matija Piškorec

Matija Piškorec earned a PhD at the University of Zagreb and is currently a research associate at the Rudjer Boskovic Institute in the Laboratory for Machine Learning and Knowledge Representation, and a postdoc at the University of Zurich in the Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technologies group. His current research interests are at the interface of applied machine learning and distributed ledger technologies and has teaching experience from both fields. He is also active as a science popularizer through Society for Out-of-Frame Education.

AI and distributed ledger technologies: A match made in heaven (or hell)

In this talk I will try to draw parallels between artificial intelligence (AI) and distributed ledger technologies (DLT, also more commonly known under less precise terms such as “blockchain” and “crypto”) by framing their development through the lens of digital revolution initiated by Shannon in the 1940’s. Both fields experienced multiple boom and bust cycles as well as public sentiment ranging from overoptimism to indifference, and through time attracted both zealous supporters and ardent critics. Most importantly, both are on track to become too ubiquitous to ignore, with one (AI) practically being there while the other (DLT) not far behind. My main thesis is that their full future prospects cannot be deduced in isolation but rather through their inevitable, and consequential, interplay.