MIT Professor Faces Backlash Over NeurIPS Keynote Comment
A keynote presentation at the prestigious NeurIPS AI conference has sparked controversy after MIT Media Lab professor Rosalind Picard referenced a Chinese student in a manner critics called racially insensitive.
The Controversial Slide
During her talk titled “How to Optimize What Matters Most,” Picard displayed a slide quoting an expelled “Chinese student from a top university” who allegedly stated: “Nobody at my school taught us morals or values.” The slide included Picard’s personal note: “Most Chinese who I know are honest and morally upright.”
Immediate Industry Reaction
AI researchers quickly voiced their concerns:
- Jiao Sun (Google DeepMind) shared the slide on X, remarking: “Mitigating racial bias from LLMs is easier than removing it from humans!”
- Yuandong Tian (Meta) called it “explicit racial bias”
Conference Response
NeurIPS organizers issued an apology, stating:
“This comment doesn’t align with our code of conduct. We’re addressing it directly with the speaker while reaffirming our commitment to diversity and inclusion.”
Speaker’s Apology
Picard expressed regret, acknowledging:
- The nationality reference was “unnecessary and irrelevant”
- She “feels badly about the distress caused”
- She’s “learning from this experience”
Key Takeaways
- Context Matters: The student’s nationality wasn’t relevant to the AI ethics discussion
- Professional Standards: Even inadvertent references can undermine inclusion efforts
- Accountability: Both the speaker and conference organizers responded promptly
This incident highlights the ongoing challenges of maintaining cultural sensitivity in global academic discourse, particularly in fast-evolving fields like AI research.
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