"AI, Software, & Wetware": a new interview series 🗣️

How real people around the world are using their wetware (brains and human intelligence) with AI-based software tools or being affected by artificial intelligence. (Audio; 2:08)

I’m delighted to announce that we at 6 ‘P’s in AI Pods are kicking off a new interview series on “AI, Software, and Wetware” in August.

What’s ‘wetware’? It’s human intelligence - our biological human brain. I picked up the term at an Agile RTP session with Andy Hunt. Andy coined¹ used the term in 2008 when he authored his book “Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your Wetware”. (He also co-authored the classic best-selling book “The Pragmatic Programmer”, and was one of the 17 founders of the Agile Alliance.)

Here’s Andy’s definition:

“Wetware – Your brain. We’ve got computer hardware, the physical computers and systems, and computer software, the programs we write. Wetware is the stuff between your ears that makes it all happen.”

These articles will be posted in the People section of our 6P newsletter. The interviews will be partly-structured Q&A sessions where we explore:

• how real people are using AI-based software with their wetware, at home or in their work,

• how well it is or isn’t working for them,

• how AI-based software is using them, their data, and their content,

• their views on AI ethics and content sourcing (whether data originators are entitled to the “4Cs (consent, control, credit, and compensation ²), and

• what they believe needs to be changed or improved, and their ideas on how.

This page will be updated whenever new interviews are published:

AI, Software, & Wetware Interview List

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What’s Next?

I have a few initial interview guests lined up. Interviews may be anonymous or with credit, and as text-only, audio, or video - whatever interviewees are comfortable with. If YOU might be willing to be interviewed, let’s chat! Please comment or message me 🙂 (I can share a guest FAQ and a file with the standard interview questions.)

I want to include a diverse set of people from many locations worldwide and across a broad range of roles, occupations, and industries. Know anyone you’d like to hear from on these questions? Please connect us!

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Photo by Michal Czyz on Unsplash

Credits

Thank you to

Rose G.

for inspiring me to seek out personal stories of real people whose lives are being affected by AI/ML technologies!

1. 2024-07-27 update: Thank you to

Roberto Becchini

for letting me know that the history of ‘wetware’ precedes Andy Hunt’s 2008 book! “Interesting fact on the term „wetware“: I have first met the term many years ago thanks to the amazing work of Rudy Rucker (mathematician, sci-fi writer, cellular automata programmer, professor). The term is the title of one of the books composing „The ware tetralogy“: software (1982), wetware (1988), freeware (1997), realware (2000). A recommended reading for the summer.”

2

Credit for the 4 Cs (consent, control, credit, compensation) phrasing goes to the Algorithmic Justice League (led by Dr. Joy Buolamwini).

Credit for the original 3 Cs (consent, credit, and compensation) belongs to CIPRI (Cultural Intellectual Property Rights Initiative) for their “3Cs' Rule: Consent. Credit. Compensation©.”