Philadelphia is Unprepared - People are Scared

October 21, 2025

The first-ever Philadelphia City Council Hearing on AI was held this past Wednesday, and there were some very interesting takeaways:

1. The City of Philadelphia is woefully unprepared for the coming impact of artificial intelligence on its citizens
2. Mayor Parker's administration does not believe they can find expertise in AI and have not sought input for policy development
3. There is no guarantee that local police and other departments are not working with ICE or other federal agencies
4. While city officials are engaging in contracts with various companies providing AI services, there are no plans to examine privacy or bias in these systems
5. There is no known policy on how the vast amounts of data collected on citizens through surveillance are being used or protected

At the end of the hearing, one thing was very clear: the spread of AI throughout the city can cause harm to everyone, but especially marginalized communities, and citizens have no trust that our leaders will protect them.

Officials need to get their act together, but sadly that will only address how the city itself uses AI technologies. Their use by federal agencies raises many questions about safety and bias, as well as constitutional concerns about consent. During the hearing, Councilman O'Rourke recognized the same when he stated that neither the state nor federal government is doing anything to protect Philadelphians. When you factor in Big Tech's plans for AI in every area of society, things only get worse. There is no oversight and no protections in place. Congress is standing on the sidelines while the world is changing before our eyes. We MUST vote for change!

No Kings 2.0

I attended a few No Kings protests on Saturday, and the crowds and sense of community were overwhelming. Thanks to everyone who came out, and a special thanks to the campaign volunteers that helped spread our message. Let's keep the pressure on this administration, despite their attempts to silence us: they are empowered by the consent of the governed; we have No Kings!

We The People Wednesdays!

I'll be the invited speaker at We The People Wednesdays this Wednesday, October 22, at 4 PM at the Richard Allen Lane train station. I'll be giving my perspective as a computer scientist on the potential harms of AI and the need for protections. I hope you can join us!