Speakers from Four Continents to Discuss Global Challenges of AI at Greater Good Gathering, April 20-21 in NY

Sponsored by Public Works LLC, Columbia University School of International & Public Affairs, Academy of Political Science, and Union Theological Seminary

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, April 6, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Greater Good Gathering may be the world’s most interesting conference on public policy issues for regular people, and this year’s Gathering – April 20-21 at The Interchurch Center in New York City and livestreamed free throughout the world on Zoom – is no exception: It mixes discussions of Artificial Intelligence by leading scientists, researchers and policymakers from around the world with live music, film, and AI-generated video art, all to make this vital issue accessible to the general public.

Speakers will appear live from eleven cities on four continents and interact with each other, the audience in New York, and live viewers worldwide to discuss topics including what is “artificial intelligence” (or, for that matter, what is intelligence?), global challenges of AI, the coming economy, international competition and insecurity, the future of creativity, the fate of humans in an AI world, its effects on human health and mental health, governance of AI, and the moral and policy implications of AI. Attendees and viewers will hear from a wide range of speakers and panelists like:

• Daniel Hulmne, the British founder of the world’s first commercial research organization focused on understanding machine consciousness;
• Maria Teresa Arnal, a Latin American tech leader now advising Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado;
• Andrew Stern, former president of the Service Workers International Union – the nation’s largest union – and expert on the future of work;
• Dan Manning, a former fighter pilot and Pentagon official focusing on human involvement in AI decision-making;
• Tiago C. Peixoto, a Brazilian tech leader now promoting democracy in the Balkans;
• Harvard University fellow and lecturer Bruce Schneier, an internationally renowned security technologist; and
• Jim Fruchterman, a leading social entrepreneur and MacArthur (“genius award”) Fellow.

They will also:

• Hear a live music demonstration by Jaron Lanier, a computer scientist and artist known as “the conscience of Silicon Valley,” who has collaborated with musicians from John Zorn, Jon Batiste and Sara Bareilles to Ornette Coleman Philip Glass, and Terry Riley.
• Watch an AI-generated art demonstration discussing the perils of AI-generated art with Berlin-based Hito Steyerl, repeatedly named one of the most influential figures in contemporary art.
• See highlights from and discuss the recently-released feature film, The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist, with its co-producer, Canadian filmmaker Charlie Tyrell.
• Read Shakespearan sonnets – generated by AI – with the scientist who generated them, Tuhin Chakrabarty, joining the discussion from Sao Paolo.

It’s unlike any other technology or policy conversation – and anyone can join, free, over two days, by registering at www.GreaterGoodGathering.org/register-now. Journalists are welcome to attend live at The Interchurch Center, 475 Riverside Drive, New York City, NY 10115 (with advance registration).

The 2026 Gathering, cosponsored by Public Works LLC, the Columbia University School of International & Public Affairs, the Academy of Political Science, and Union Theological Seminary, will be the first step in a nationwide conversation throughout 2026 on the effects of AI and the new political, economic, and social challenges and opportunities that will result from its rise.

Prior years’ participants have included international relations expert Robert Jervis; media authority Kathleen Hall Jamieson; Estonian information security expert Liina Areng; noted Internet scholar Tim Wu; students from Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL; Martin Luther King III; Kalev Leetaru, one of the FOREIGN POLICY magazine’s 100 leading world thinkers; MacArthur “genius” award winner Greg Asbed; Marina Gorbis, executive director of Silicon Valley's Institute for the Future; James Fallows, national correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly; Robin Chase, co-founder and former CEO of Zipcar; Malcolm Frank, President of Cognizant Digital Business; Tom Vilsack, former US Secretary of Agriculture; and founders of social ventures like pigeonly.com, ostraa.com, speechify.com and kulisha. The proceedings are published by the Academy of Political Science and covered by numerous journalists.

For more information, contact the conference organizer, Eric B. Schnurer, eric@ericschnurer.com, +1 484-432-0567.

Eric Schnurer
Public Works, LLC
+1 484-432-0567
email us here

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