Critical Science

Mila’s stated mission is “to be a global pole for scientific advances that inspires innovation and the progress of AI for the benefit of all” and its foundational values include “ethics” and “social conscience”. The Critical Science reading group seeks to further these goals by applying ideas from critical theory—a philosophical perspective that analyses and critiques power imbalances in society. As scientists with a critical mindset, we wonder how AI development and science in general can really serve all people and what values truly underpin our field and academic structures at large.

We view this reading group, Critical Science, as the natural evolution of the Against Military AI reading group. Here, we intend to expand our critical examination of the interconnections between science and society at large. While keeping the links between AI and the military a core topic, we would like to acquire a broader perspective and explore other topics too, such as the multiple ways in which corporate greed and antidemocratic governance systems influence AI research to benefit a select few, at the expense of society at large. We also want to look deeper, and critically study the assumptions and values that underpin the ways we do science, the questions we ask ourselves and how we seek answers. To this purpose, we intend to educate ourselves by reading philosophy of science and the works of critical scientists in other fields and times who have addressed similar questions.

The Critical Science Reading Group follows the Berlin Code of Conduct.