'Ensuring AI accountability : lessons from Meta's oversight board on human rights protection'

Forthcoming Event

Date
 12 June 2025, 12:30pm - 1:30pm

Location
 Oxford Martin School & Online
34 Broad Street (corner of Holywell and Catte Streets), Oxford, OX1 3BD

2025 06 AIGI Event

Recent developments in social media demonstrate that innovation cannot reliably be left to govern itself. This lesson has given rise to numerous AI governance initiatives, ranging from voluntary guidelines to binding regulatory frameworks, that underscore the importance of maintaining a “human-in-the-loop”, to align algorithmic systems with societal values and mitigate potential harms. Although the idea of independent accountability mechanisms for AI has become a focal point within the field, only one model currently exists in which an external body is empowered to issue binding decisions for a technology company, and make recommendations.

In this 5th year anniversary of the Oversight Board for Meta, Julie Owono, an inaugural member, will offer a critical examination of the Board’s jurisprudence, elucidating how its decisions and recommendations contribute to the protection of human rights on Meta’s platforms. She will conclude by assessing the broader implications of entrusting accountability to an external, independent body tasked with overseeing large-scale technology platforms.

REGISTRATION

Julie Owono AIGI talk

Julie Owono
Executive Director, Internet Sans Frontieres

Julie Owono is the executive Director of non-profit Internet Sans Frontieres, and the founder of the Content Policy & Society Lab, a company first incubated at Stanford University, that helps Tech be better for society. Julie is one of the inaugural members of the Meta Oversight Board, which oversees content moderation decisions on Facebook and instagram. She is also a researcher affiliated with the Berkman Klein Center at Harvard university.

Inspired by her professional path, spanning from civil society to Academia, all the way through the private sector, Julie Owono has an acute understanding of what it takes to innovate in Tech, while safeguarding the foundational principles of democratic societies. At the intersection of Business and Human Rights, Julie is passionate about creating spaces for collaborations between Tech companies, civil society organizations, Academic institutions, Governments, and finding creative solutions to major governance and policy challenges posed by Technology.