ariel foundation international - non govenmental …...becoming democratized, by 2025 roughly every...

Report written by Eugenia Novoa (Speaker), Siddhesh Kapote (Speaker) Ebba Engstrom (Speaker), Jose Alvarez (Speaker) and Smriti Sonam (Special Rapporteur). Images provided by AFI Changemakers and UNCTAD Youth Summit Delegates 2018. ISBN: 978-0-9990239-5-2

Copyright © 2018 Ariel Foundation International

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to United Nations

Conference on Trade and Development, particularly its Secretary General, Dr.

Mukhisa Kituyi, who provided us with the unique opportunity to participate in

the UNCTAD Youth Forum of 2018. The forum was held during the World

Investment Forum and in accordance, participants discussed numerous topics

technology advancement and its youth involvement leading to the co-authors’

inspired contributions.

Equally, we express our thankfulness to Dr. Ariel King and the AFI Changemakers

team for the generous opportunity to write this report and spread our main

takeaways of the UNCTAD Youth Forum.

Lastly, we would like to thank all of the friends (including our UNCTAD Youth

Forum network) and family members, who constantly support our efforts toward

making an impact amongst youth and in shaping the digital revolution.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................... 3

UNCTAD Youth addressing data challenges in a digital economy ..................... 5

By Eugenia Novoa

Technology in Agriculture ............................................................................................ 9

By Siddhesh Kapote

Gendering of AI/Robots: Implications for Gender Equality amongst Youth

Generations…………………………………………………………………………………..13

By Ebba Engstrom

Finance in the age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution: How Technology and

Finance are already working together to shape the new digital economy .... 24

By Jose Alvarez

Blockchain, new symbol of disruption? .................................................................. 30

By Smriti Sonam

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UNCTAD Youth addressing data challenges in a

digital economy

By Eugenia Novoa

Abstract

During UNCTAD Youth Forum 2018

sessions related to cybersecurity, social

media and even blockchains raised the

issue of data collection. The pillar role

that data plays in the new industrial

revolution creates uncertainty amongst

youth globally; hence, the international

fora must raise this topic, so that youth

undertake new opportunities and find

solutions to foreseeable data challenges.

I. Introduction

Data protection and privacy two

paramount topics lately discussed due

to the upgrowing era of new

technologies. Trends show a soaring

need of data in different business

context, for this reason people already

allude it as “the new oil”. Sound

controversies ascend by those

categorizing data as a commodity, and

others challenging data collection

persuaded by privacy of individuals. As

years go by, digital platforms steadily

outgrow, and youth are the ones to

1 United Nations Conference of Trade and Development. Technology and innovation report, (2018)

tackle the risks and opportunities

presented by this technological novelty.

This article aims to draw youth attention

around some important issues arising

out of data usage and collection. Starting

with a reference to data’s crucial role for

the digital economy, followed by a brief

context of the cross-border challenges to

the international fora; and lastly, will

mention some worthy efforts to solve

privacy issues.

II. Crucial role of Data in the new

Digital Economy

Access to technology is increasingly

becoming democratized, by 2025

roughly every person on the planet is

expected have access to Internet-

connected mobile devices. International

reports predict that data will grow

exponentially from around 3 zettabytes

in 2013 to approximately 40 Big data by

20201. Digitization is transforming

globalization as the volume of cross-

border dataflows has grown 45 times

larger since 2005, studies show that

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nearly twelve percent of the global goods

trade is conducted via international e-

commerce2.

Moreover, European studies estimate

that approximately a hundred thousand

(100,000) new jobs related to data

management will be created by 2020.

The global market for hardware,

software and professional services

linked to the implementation of big data

will reach 43.7 billion euros by 2019 to

European land3.

Money today is no longer in oil pipelines,

the new oil is data, it boosts the

provision of digital services, improves

decision making, while gearing

technologic advancements such as

artificial intelligence (AI), big data,

Internet of things and so forth. We are

living in a “Data Era” driven by the use of

devices, speed of connectivity,

continuous expansion of new

technologies, and generating countless

amounts of data stored in the cloud.

Such evolvements are paving future

entrepreneurships and job markets for

youth.

III. Global efforts to unravel privacy

issues

2 McKinsey Global Institute. What’s now and next in analytics, AI, and automation, briefing note, (2017) 3 European Commission. Enter the data economy, (2017)

The dynamics of a global economy

driven by internet and disruptive

technologies are enigmatic. Due to the

cross-border nature of internet and data

transfers, stakeholders seem reluctant

to find a wide-reaching solution to

privacy concerns through regulatory

frameworks. Perhaps, technological

charms of the digital era are the key to

solve these matters.

i. Cross-border challenges to policy-

makers in a global economy

The popularity of internet services and

privacy rights advance thorough history,

some countries have implemented

different legal systems and rules

safeguarding its citizens data4. These

regulations vary in accordance to each

country’s data protection regime, which

incorporates rights and principles

concerning data processing5.

From an economic outlook, the

divergent approaches to data protection

4 Renee Berry & Matthew Reisman, Policy Challenges of Cross-Border Cloud Computing, J. OF INT’L COM. & ECON., May, 2012 [hereinafter Berry] at 14-16 5 Id.

“We do not plug our devices, we plug our life. All the Internet of Things can be the Internet of Threat”

Professor Solange Ghernaouti, UNCTAD Youth Forum, 2018

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can thwart transnational negotiations,

take as an example the divergences

presented in the high-tech environment

between the United States and Europe,

which have even reached international

trade negotiations (Doha round) and

BITs (TPP)6.

Many controversies pertaining misuse of

data bounce around user profiling and

giant social media platforms. Because of

this, international agencies encourage

the adoption of data protection

regulatory frameworks7. Nonetheless,

legislators find very challenging to

control cross-border flows of data, as

their laws don’t have an international

scope. Youth should take part of these

conversation acting as liaison to

safeguard future generations’ interests.

ii. The key technological standpoint:

Perfect Online Privacy

While policy makers seen to have a

headache trying to regulate cross-border

data flows, technology wizards are

already creating a new tool called

“Perfect Online Privacy” through

blockchain technologies, another sound

6 Joshua Meltzer, The Internet, Cross-Border Data Flows and International Trade, ISSUES IN TECH. INNOVATION, No. 22, Feb., 2013 [hereinafter Meltzer] at 13 7 United Nations Conference of Trade and Development. Data protection regulations

topic during UNCTAD Youth Forum

2018.

Overhauling the issues of cross border

data flows might be possible by

decentralizing privacy. All comes down

to combining “a blockchain, re-purposed

as an access-control moderator, with an

off blockchain storage solution”8. In this

way, users won’t need a trusted third

party, the blockchain will validate the

accuracy of their personal data; and even

more, it will bypass the famous visible

public ledger of bitcoin.

Some cryptographic protocols are

already developing this innovative

approach to solve privacy challenges.

This is a great opportunity for youth

bright-minds to find innovative

protocols and make “Perfect Online

Privacy” a far-reaching technology.

IV. Conclusion

To sum up, there are still many

issues to be discussed in the

international fora, it is true that

presently different governments are

trying to boost ecommerce and data

flow, yet regulations need to tie internet

reality and its cross-border reach.

and international data flows: Implications for trade and development, (2016) 8 Zyskind, Guy & Nathan, Oz & Sandy' Pentland, Alex. (2015). Decentralizing Privacy: Using Blockchain to Protect Personal Data. IEEE. 180-184. 10.1109/SPW.2015.27.

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Innovative blockchain protocols might

possibly be the clue to these

troublesome regulatory challenges.

V. Recommendations

1. Creating awareness of the relevance of

data flows for the new digital-based

transactions, which are setting off

opportunities and challenges to youth.

2. Fostering youth participation to

undertake international initiatives

addressing cross-border data flows’

issues.

3. Incentivizing youth entrepreneurial

skills to pave on novel alternatives like

Perfect Online Privacy.

References

European Commission. Enter the data economy, (2017)

Joshua Meltzer, The Internet, Cross-Border Data Flows and International Trade, ISSUES IN TECH. INNOVATION, No. 22, Feb., 2013

McKinsey Global Institute. What’s now and next in analytics, AI, and automation, briefing note, (2017)

Renee Berry & Matthew Reisman, Policy Challenges of Cross-Border Cloud Computing, J. OF INT’L COM. & ECON., May, (2012)

United Nations Conference of Trade and Development. Data protection regulations and international data flows: Implications for trade and development, (2016)

United Nations Conference of Trade and Development. Technology and innovation report, (2018) Zyskind, Guy & Nathan, Oz & Sandy' Pentland, Alex. (2015). Decentralizing Privacy: Using Blockchain to protect Personal Data. IEEE. 180-184. 10.1109/SPW.2015.27.

About the Author

Eugenia Novoa, 27

[email protected]

International lawyer strongly fueled by

law, economics, technology, and

globalization.

Presently, founding partner of Discover

and Learn International and active

member of UNCTAD Youth.

Has led regulatory projects pertaining

Ecuadorian registry system, data

protection and interoperability.

Likewise, Eugenia has experience in

Ecuadorian stock market and

competition regime.

Young mother advocating for a

borderless digital revolution. We are the

future!

Love is my religion | mindfulness my

method | yoga my hobby.

mailto:[email protected]

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Technology in Agriculture

By Siddhesh Kapote

1. What is Sustainable Development?

Sustainable development is

development that meets the needs of the

present without compromising the

ability of future generations to meet

their needs as well. Today, technology

plays a big role in sustainable

development in all of its aspects: social,

environmental, economic and we see

more number of people relying on

technology to get their daily chores

done.

2. How is Technology beneficial for

Sustainable Development?

The future of technology for sustainable

development seems to be very

promising. As for any kind of

Sustainable Development requires a

detailed analysis and repetitive survey of

many factors which is to be done

initially. This is a time taking, tedious

and repetitive job if done manually. Here

AI steps into the picture and can find

trends and relationships between

different independent, environmental or

social factors very efficiently. This kind

of research can be further used for

Sustainable Development projects.

There are multiple innovations

happening across the world in various

sectors (vertical farming in agriculture,

grid transformation using blockchain,

emission-trading policy frameworks,

biocrude and renewable fuel production

using biomass, etc.) to make possible

that technology and sustainable

development go hand in hand.

3. Role of Technology in Agriculture

While there are so many advances taking

place with the help of technology, one of

the important and fast growing areas is

Agriculture. Since there is a rapid

escalation of food demand due to the

growing population worldwide, the

demand for smart technology Artificial

Intelligence is gaining pace in the

agriculture industry.

According to the UN Food and

Agricultural Organisation (FAO), global

population is going to increase its reach

up to 9.2 billion by 2050, which means

in the next 32 years there will be 2 billion

more people on this earth with limited

resources. In such a situation, only

increase in plantation will not be a

feasible option, hence the adoption of AI

technologies in agriculture will be

needed.

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Driven by the rising need for high

precision crop analysis, automated

farming techniques, and collection of

data from the field, the world is likely to

witness the agriculture industry get

smarter with the implementation of

technologies in the coming years. Data

thus derived from implementing smart

technologies can help farmers yield high

quality and larger quantity of crops

(Wilson 2018).

(Precision-agriculture image by Montri

Nipitvittaya/Shutterstock.com)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is currently

among the latest and most worked on

technologies. AI is a program based

technology, owing to which digital

computers and robots can perform real-

time tasks by using cognitive human

intelligence, such as speech recognition,

visual perception, decision making, etc.

AI in agriculture is commonly used for

precision farming, crop monitoring,

driverless tractors, automated irrigation

systems, crop analytics, etc. With

precision farming, farmers will be able to

analyze real time data like weather,

temperature, moisture, prices or GPS

signals and provide guidelines on

increasing yield and making smart

farming decisions. It is also helping to

automate and streamline tasks in data-

intensive industries traditionally ruled

by rigorous science and good old-

fashioned human analysis. Seed

retailers, for example, are using AI

products to churn through terabytes of

precision agricultural data to create the

best corn crops, while pest control

companies are using AI-based image-

recognition technology to identify and

treat various types of bugs and vermin

(Boulton 2017). Looking at all these

innovations and advances actually

makes us believe how AI has evolved

from science fiction to practical

implementations that can potentially

help human life make better.

Spurred by these factors, the global

smart agriculture market is projected to

report a CAGR of 13.5% between 2017

and 2025 (Kishorkanade 2017). At this

pace, the market’s valuation will rise

from US$6.55 bn in 2016 to US$23.44 bn

by the end of 2025.

With an increase in the use of

Technology for Agriculture, farmers in

the rural areas are now able to

understand the importance of education

and are encouraging their children to

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take up good education and contribute

in the smart agriculture industry. More

efficiently, this saves them a lot of time

which they can utilise in doing other

activities and learn new things. Also,

along with the least amount of efforts

and manpower required with the help of

technology, old and poor farmers no

more have to rely on others for their

work. Looking at the recent and

upcoming government initiatives, one

can reasonably agree that our

agriculture industry is developing in the

smart agriculture industry.

Conclusion

These factors together add up to how

technology is helpful for sustainable

development. But along with this it is

also essential to know that Technology

alone cannot bring about a change.

The Sustainable Development of human

society requires the structural

improvement of both, individual

humans and society as a whole.

Technology can facilitate this, but

without the action of people to change

ourselves at an individual and collective

level, it will be difficult to achieve every

idea contained within the concept of

sustainable development.

In order to make this possible, our

governments, international

organisations, consumers, private

industry and educational institutions

should all work together and facilitate

Sustainable Development.

Recommendations

1. Government should support

Universities and institutions to develop

technologies that will benefit us

environmentally.

2. Awareness should be created

within farmers about various AI

applications so that they do not resist

from making use of technology.

3. With the help of international

collaborations, governments should

promote recent advances in technology.

4. International Agencies should

provide more funding and Youth

opportunities to facilitate the learning.

5. Sustainable Development should

be added in the educational curriculum

for all levels of education.

6. Instructive workshops should be

carried out at a local and regional level

so that more people get familiarized

with the uses.

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References

1. Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations http://www.fao.org/home/en/index.html

2. Global Smart Agriculture Analysis - Matt Wilson (2018) ARC https://www.reuters.com/brandfeatures/venture-capital/article?id=49811

3. AI, Machine blossoming in Agriculture Clint Boulton (2017) https://www.cio.com/article/3184206/artificial-intelligence/ai-machine-learning-blossom-in-agriculture-and-pest-control.html

4. Smart Agriculture Market - Kishorkanade (2017) http://www.hubarticles.com/press-realese/other/article-smart-agriculture-market-industry-insights-trends-and-forecast-upto-2025-1195.html

About the Author

Siddhesh Kapote [email protected]

Siddhesh Kapote is a Computer Science

and Electrical Engineering student at

University of Mumbai, India. Having

deep interest in technology, he has

worked on projects including AI,

Robotics, Electric & Hybrid Vehicles and

Visual Positioning System. He has

received merit award for successfully

designing Electric Truck at Ezenith.

Siddhesh’s past experience involves

work as a Team Leader for International

Relations and Marketing at AIESEC India.

As a team leader, he attended several

local, regional and national conferences.

He was also selected as a Facilitator at

the Regional Youth Leadership

Conference in Silvassa,India. Siddhesh

has worked on projects like Wildlife

Welfare, Women Empowerment, Quality

Education and Sales & Marketing. He

looks forward to keep learning about

technology and implement it for the

betterment of our world.


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Gendering of AI/Robots: Implications for

Gender Equality amongst Youth Generations

By Ebba Engstrom

Introduction

Back at the end of October 2018, the UN

saw the UN Conference on Trade and

Development (UNCTAD) Youth Forum

take place in alignment with the World

Investment Forum (WIF). It was an

opportunity for selected youth to share

voices in a non-tokenised manner,

regarding topics of matter to UNCTAD

with the Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs) as a core theme. In the rhetoric

shared by youth delegates concerning

UNCTAD themes, clear narratives were

expressed regarding the future of work

and sustainable entrepreneurship. Two

of these were, firstly, the call for greater

inclusive gender equality in the work

force and increased diversity- including

heightened support of marginalised

groups to become entrepreneurs- and

secondly, a requirement for broader

understanding and education

surrounding the developments of the

fourth Industrial Revolution and the

skills needed to face challenges brought

on by automatisation.

The discussions emphasising on these

points fell in high alignment with the

WIF’s Global Investment Game Changers

Summit- one of the week’s greatest

highlights. This panel discussion saw the

presentation of Sophia, the first

humanoid robot granted citizenship by

any country, to the audience- leading to

further controversial debate

surrounding artificial intelligence (AI)

and robots, their design and role in

future society. For the fourth industrial

revolution it is expected that 75 million

jobs will be displaced through

automatisation by 2022, and robots and

AI will play a significant role in this1.

With these technologies’ increasing

presence and interaction, specifically

with Millennial and Generation Z

individuals, it is important to recognise

the societal reflections and biases they

project in their designs- and the impact

these can have for instilling prejudice

toward marginalised groups- as in

regard to gender. The showcased

example of Sophia’s normative female-

gendered design, clearly raises strong

concern surrounding biased gendered

design of robots and AI- and its impact

on gender equality and inclusive social

economic development. In this written

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piece, the topic of gendering

technologies in the form of robots and

AI (and their overlap) will be explored,

with emphasis on its significance for

youth generations, as they are the ones

who will potentially live the ethical

dilemmas of future societal gender

equality, poised by these technological

designs.

Robots and AI- Relating to

Gendering: Definitions and Issues

Defining Robots and AI

To understand the issues perpetrated by

the gendering of technologies such as

robots and AI, there must first be a

stated definition of these technologies

and that of gender. To begin with, robots

are described as machines which are

programmed to carry out functions

either autonomously or semi-

autonomously2. Robots do not

necessarily need to be able ‘to think’, as

this would require some form of AI-

which instead regards computer

programming and algorithms designed

to process information, learn from it,

tackle complex logical problems, and/or

have language-understanding2. There are

various forms of AI, but they can be split

into two broader classifications- narrow

and general AI3. Narrow AI has its

purpose of carrying out specified tasks

(such as language-recognition) without

being specifically programmed for this

output- which is how Amazon’s Alexa or

Apple’s Siri functions3. Artificial general

intelligence (AGI) is rather comparable to

human intelligence (HI), as it has an

adaptable intellect toward carrying out

numerous types of tasks- but as of today

it has not yet been developed3. However,

in a study conducted amongst expert

groups in the field in 2012/13, a 50%

chance was reported for the

development of AGI by 2040 and 20503.

What is the Outlook for the Job

Market?

There is no doubt AI and robots- and

robots embedded with AI- will play a

significant role in the shifting

automatisation landscape of the 4th

Industrial Revolution. And this will have

a heavy direct impact on Millennials

(who now occupy the majority of job

roles)4 and individuals from Generation

Z, entering the workforce4. With current

technologies, the consultancy firm

McKinsey, has reported that in American

industry 30% of activities across 60% of

occupations could be automated5. In

fact, in a study carried out by the OECD6

in 2018, it was described that across 32

participatory countries studied, one in

two jobs were to be affected by

automation to a significant extent- but

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the figures for this statistic varied highly

between the countries. More so, different

jobs showed different degrees to which

they could be impacted6- and

interestingly, in terms of youth

employment (especially in regard to

gender equality), findings from the study

suggested that teenage and entry level

job tasks were of highest risk of

automation, in comparison to senior

positions6. In addition, according to the

WEF, women were more likely to hold

these types of positions7. Yet, the OECD6

also stated that young people are better

skilled to face the redundancy provided

by this change, and better suited to

adapt to it and to find jobs created by

the new technologies. In accordance, the

WEF reported that 75 million jobs will be

specifically displaced by a combination

of AI, robots and other automation

technologies by 2022- but also

suggested 133 million new jobs could be

created by the same year1. Furthermore,

as shown by the OECD6, AI specifically

puts low-skilled jobs at risk than

previous technological progresses, but

as discussed by Forbes, in alignment-

new industries and careers will come

about which do not exist as of yet8.

In observing such statistics- it is of

interest to further understand how

youth themselves perceive this future

reality of AI and robots entering the

workforce and gaining societal

functions/roles. In a study conducted by

Fuze, it was for example found that

current youth in workforce were more

sceptical than older generations of AI

coming in to complete job tasks- as they

foremost had a negative perception of

their humanised HI aspects, which could

make their own creative and problem-

solving skills replaceable9. On the other

hand, in a survey of members from

Generation Z in comparison to members

of Generation X, it was found that 29% of

the former group saw that AI provided

an opportunity in taking over jobs they

otherwise deemed boring- whereas only

16% of the latter group shared this

opinion10. Yet, whether youth are

comfortable or not with the notion of AI

and robots coming into the workforce

and society to replace tasks earlier

carried out by humans, this is a reality in

the happening- and thus, we must

understand how their designs and

reflections of designers’ views, impact

societal norms and prejudices.

Defining Gender

When defining the concept of gender, we

must first differentiate it from a

person’s ‘sex’. According to the WHO11,

gender is observed as the “socially

constructed characteristics of women

and men”, which can refer to the

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relationships between men and women,

norms and roles which they take on.

These social constructs differ between

varying societies. Sex, on the other hand,

is assigned accordingly to a new-born’s

genitals12- which is most often either

biologically female or male- yet, there is

a spectrum due to differing intersexes13.

The gender of an individual is often

presumed with the sex, however, it lies

and develops within a broader spectrum-

based on a person’s experience of their

own body and society’s perception of

their body, their identity as an

individual, and expression of their

gender in the context of their society12.

Gender remains a big part of our identity

as humans, as it still impacts how we

perceive and feel in harmony with

ourselves- especially in the context of

external societal created gender roles,

norms, and outlooks on intra- and inter-

gender relationships11,12. Today, it is

widely more accepted that gender holds

a broader spectrum rather than a binary

categorisation12, and some individuals

choose to either identify with a more

fluid notion or no gender at all14.

However, the discussion of even

identifying with a gender at all, still

remains, demonstrating gender’s

highlighted role as an identification

concept.

In reflection of the gendering (designing

normative attributes associated with

genders) of technologies, robots or AI

designed up to this day with gendered

attributes, first of all, do not have a

biological sex (as they do not have

biological genitals), but also do not have

a self-developed gender- their gendered

aspects have merely been coded in (in

the form of voices as with for example,

Amazon’s Alexa) or on a physical front,

added as design-additions13,15. This is not

to say that future AI may be able to

develop their own genders- and maybe

even invent genders not falling into any

existent human classification. Thus, the

gendering of AI or robots, is currently

human-induced and a reflection of

designers’ views on gender associated

attributes- as well as, their weighted

understanding of (and potentially, care

for) how different expressed genders are

impacted when represented by

technologies (even if unintentionally)

produced to carry out certain functions

and end up being treated with particular

mannerisms.

Gendering (and Humanising):

Questions and Issues Raised

When gendering AI and robots, it is

definite that this brings along biases in

design determined by the designers at

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play- which raises several issues. In this

piece, the issues reflected on pertain

specifically to the gendering of

AI/robots in physically expressive

manner. However, it should also be

mentioned that there are inherent

issues, and several case examples of

these, of coding of AI being carried out

by a non-diverse, male-dominated group

of persons7, as well as of AI being fed

with data representing gender

stereotypes and perceptions in a

patriarchal society16. One such example

is that of prejudicial Google searches

reported by the Guardian, whereby in

searching the phrase “unprofessional

hairstyles for work” provided images of

black women with natural hairstyles,

whereas “professional hairstyles” led to

the display of Caucasian women with

done-up hair-does7.

Another example, is the AI chatbot Tay

gendered as a female, launched by

Microsoft in 2016 on Twitter to interact

with the community, only to be taken

down 16 hours later17. Tay would

formulate her responses based on

conversational input with Twitter users-

yet as a result of these interactions she

started expressing misogynistic and

racist phrases- as that was how she was

bemet17. Professor Gina Neff at Oxford

Internet Institute, has argued that the

Tay-scenario could have been avoided if

women had been consulted and been at

the table when designing and developing

the chatbot17. Additionally, in a talk

offered by Neff at the Oxford Internet

Institute18, the question was raised of

how coded biases in AI and robots

embedded with AI, would affect persons

of marginalised societal groups

interacting with these technologies.

In looking at the issues concerning the

gendering of AI and robots, it is

important to factor in that this both

entails the design of these with both

normative female and male qualities-

and both of these can do harm toward

the perception of the different genders.

Now, firstly, one of the issues lies with

the sheer design of these technologies.

The way in which they are designed and

thereafter identified by humans who

have either created or use them- can

enforce stereotypes regarding how

different genders should look, sound or

act. Secondly, if different gendered AI or

robots take on differentiating roles or

functions in society- in the way

Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri have a

perceived ‘female’ voice and are virtual

assistants- it can reinforce stereotypes

and negative social norms of the roles

(including workforce roles) different

genders should undertake. For example,

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it has been found in different studies

that female voices for virtual assistant

technologies and for guidance on for

example, relationships, were in

preference over male voices19. However,

when it came to AI systems instructing

orders on subject areas such as

computing- male voices were preferred19.

This is a problematic scenario, yet by

allowing for gender stereotypes to be

played on and be lived out- the issue

becomes even further exacerbated.

Thirdly, by putting these gendered

technologies in certain roles and

allowing for their treatment to be

disrespectful or authoritarian by any

human standard, it can furthermore

reinforce ideas that a gender can be

treated in such a way20. The latter, is

specifically a concern raised in the

production of gendered robots intended

for sexual use, as it can contribute to the

furthered objectification of any gender

represented by these21,22.

Laurie Penny23 has in accordance with

this third point argued, that with the

introduction of AI and robots to

specifically take care of domestic and

service functions- that expanded female

gendering is of likelihood to happen in

our current patriarchally normed

society. In a discussive piece23, she rather

provocatively points out that this is

because exposure to the male gendered

technologies would cause us to feel

empathy and want us to treat them as

equals- which would not be suitable as

they are there to perform tasks for

humans. This is a highly unsettling

vision- and one we must be aware of

could happen due to current gender

norms and perceptions, as well as

cautious of- in order to ensure societal

gender equality.

Gendering and Humanising AI

and Robots: How are They

Remaining Viable Options?

With all these underlying issues

associated with the gendering of AI, one

might ask why it is still considered as a

viable design option. In regard to voice

systems, Robert Weideman (an executive

vice president at Nuance

Communications Inc.) has stated that

creating genderless versions of these, is

first of all, and in simple terms-

difficult19. However, the company was in

fact able to create a more childlike, less

gender-associated voice for SoftBank’s

Pepper- but which may in turn raise

other concerns of AI/robot design

incorporating children-features, and in

the way they then are treated. Secondly,

using voices identified as female, also

has a marketing and consumer aspect-

as female voices have been found more

welcoming by both men and women19.

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Yet, in a study carried out at Indiana

University- when more responses were

acquired in regard to preference of

female or male synthesised voices,

which were beyond the voluntary survey

scope- men showed no preference, but

women showed an even stronger

preference for the female voices19.

Beyond both the technical and consumer

aspects of gendering technologies, the

question arises as to whether the

gendering (even if at a ‘neutral’

androgynous level) of these is

furthermore, a foremost step in their

humanisation (designing to share

attributes of humans or in

representation of humans)24- as gender,

in all its forms, remains a prominent

part of self-identification. And the

humanisation of AI/robots is the

technological development direction we

are heading in24- even if the question has

arisen of whether the humanisation of AI

and robots is really necessary, and if it

should even be allowed at any level of AI

which is not on par with HI (as it could

have unintended consequences for how

we perceive humans)21.

Studies have in prior shown that

specifically robots are perceived as being

more trustworthy if they are humanised-

which could potentially lead to their

increased adoption in society24,25,26.Yet, in

humanising robots and AI, we have to

ask ourselves whether our perception of

them as machines changes- for example,

whether it causes us to feel empathy or

even love for them, and whether will it

make us have higher expectations on the

technologies to carry out human

responsibilities or it will make us

hesitant to have them carry out certain

jobs which could cause them harm24,27. In

feeling such empathy and forming

strong bonds, we may expect robots/AI

to attain certain human rights and

potential citizenships (which the

consulting firm Accenture has argued

are necessary to keep robots/AI on ‘the

right track’28)- raising them to the same

position as humans in society. Perhaps

this will be the first step in AI/robots

dissociating themselves from their

creators, and making us dispensable.

Furthermore, it must be explored how

these new robot/AI-human relationships

will impact the societal fabric and

human-human relationships24. In

reflection of gender- whether this be cis-

female or male, trans, or even a-

gendered- as stated in prior, this is still

a prominent part in how we define

ourselves as humans. Thus, it is of

interest to see if we can actually move

away from the whole concept, even from

the level of androgyny, if trying to

achieve highly humanised robots or AI.

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Gender Equality amongst Youth:

More Important Than Ever

Now, the gendering of AI and robots, and

its consequences for gender equality, is

most definitely an issue all generations

should take an interest to and engage in-

as current views and voices will have an

impact on the designs of tomorrow.

However, it is especially pivotal for

youth to be part of these discussions. It

is the forthcoming generations

(Millennials and Generation Z included)

who are predicted to (and will most

likely) experience, the most direct and

challenging impact of automatisation-

and be in increasing contact with AI and

robots. To ensure that these generations’

expectations on gender equality in

overarching society, including in the

workforce, are fulfilled- they must both

be educated on the topic of biased and

gendered design, and also be able to

shape the ethical discussions which

determine the designs themselves.

In recent years, the question of gender

equality (even if still heavily discussed

through a binary lens) has really been of

emphasis. This reality has possibly

brought on by 4th wave feminism

mechanisms of using social media to

spread information and foster

communications- and driven by

highlighted criticism and protests of the

gender pay gap, movements such as

#MeToo and #TimesUp29, and the

incorporation of the UN SDG 5- working

toward gender equality. However,

despite all these pushes, and even

statistical data produced presenting the

benefits of a more gender inclusive and

diversified workforce in organisations

and companies30, there is still a lot of

work to do.

For today’s and future society, the

newest generation to enter the

workforce, Generation Z, expects gender

equality to be the norm29- as they see

gender inequality and ‘glass ceilings’ in

the work place as outdated. In a survey

carried out on Generation Z, it was found

that 69% of respondents wanted to work

and live in a diverse community. More

so, there has been a resurgence in the

feminist movement amongst youth- and

today, the movement has developed its

narrative to be more inclusive and

focused on all genders- including men,

women, trans and non-binary

individuals31. Furthermore, it is strongly

recognised that there is intersectionality

to gender perceptions- and the realities

for, for example different races of a

gender, must be taken into account31.

In a future where the humanising and

associated gendering of AI and robots,

appears to be an expected trajectory24, it

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is essential that a more diverse group of

people of varying genders and races are

sat at the table when producing the

designs for AI and robots- as well as in

discussing the implications these will

have for gender equality.

Conclusion

To conclude, today we are experiencing

the employment sector’s entrance into

the 4th Industrial Revolution and the

furthered adoption and development of

robots and AI for work and societal

functions. Millennials, Generation Z and

future generations are those who will

grow alongside these developments, as

people and in job role. Moreover, they

will observe and be in direct experience,

of the impact these will have in how we

perceive other humans and human

relationships. In designing and

humanising AI/robots, and doing so

with a gendered outlook, our society

must discuss and raise the ethical

questions of the impact this will have for

the reinforcement of gender stereotypes

and gender equality amongst humans.

Furthermore, for these conversations to

be the most insightful and bring about

the most representative outputs, voices

from across the spectra must be heard-

including, and pivotally, those of youth.

References 1. World Economic Forum (2018). The Future of Jobs Report 2018. [online] Www3.weforum.org. Available at: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_2018.pdf. 2. Owen-Hill, A. (2017). What's the Difference Between Robotics and Artificial Intelligence?. [online] Blog.robotiq.com. Available at: https://blog.robotiq.com/whats-the-difference-between-robotics-and-artificial-intelligence.

3. Heath, N. (2018). What is AI? Everything you need to know about Artificial Intelligence | ZDNet. [online] ZDNet. Available at: https://www.zdnet.com/article/what-is-ai-everything-you-need-to-know-about-artificial-intelligence/. 4. Loehr, A. (2018). Future Of Work Trends To Watch: Gen Z, AI & Automation [Infographic]. [online] Anneloehr.com. Available at: https://www.anneloehr.com/2018/07/12/future-work-trends-gen-z-automation-ai-infographic/.

5. Social Chain (2018). AI Equals Disruption, But What Will the Impact Be for Gen Z? - Scribe - Social Chain. [online] Social Chain. Available at: https://www.socialchain.com/scribe/ai-equals-disruption-will-impact-gen-z/.

6. Nedelkoska, L. and Quintini, G. (2018). Automation, skills use and training. OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers, No. 202, OECD Publishing, Paris. 7. Bartoletti, I. (2018). Women must act now, or male-designed robots will take over our lives | Ivana Bartoletti. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/mar/13/women-robots-ai-male-artificial-intelligence-automation. 8. Marlin, D. (2018). Millennials, This Is How Artificial Intelligence Will Impact Your Job For Better And Worse. [online] Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielmarlin/2018/01/16/millennials-this-is-how-artificial-intelligence-will-impact-your-job-for-better-and-worse/#444bbac34533.

https://www.socialchain.com/scribe/ai-equals-disruption-will-impact-gen-z/

https://www.socialchain.com/scribe/ai-equals-disruption-will-impact-gen-z/

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9. Middleton, C. (2018). The Future of Work: Youth sceptical of A.I., 'work as a service' rising | Internet of Business. [online] Internet of Business. Available at: https://internetofbusiness.com/future-of-work-youth-sceptical-of-a-i-work-as-a-service-rising-special-report/.

10. Onrec.com. (2018). Gen Z most concerned about robots taking their jobs | Onrec. [online] Available at: http://www.onrec.com/news/statistics-and-trends/gen-z-most-concerned-about-robots-taking-their-jobs. 11. World Health Organization. (2018). Gender. [online] Available at: http://www.who.int/gender-equity-rights/understanding/gender-definition/en/.

12. Gender Spectrum. (2017). Understanding Gender. [online] Available at: https://www.genderspectrum.org/quick-links/understanding-gender/.

13. Søraa, R. (2017). Mechanical genders: how do humans gender robots?. Gender, Technology and Development, 21(1-2), pp.99-115.

14. McQuater, K. (2018). Gen Z: realness, gender fluidity and in search of balance | News. [online] Research Live. Available at: https://www.research-live.com/article/news/gen-z-realness-gender-fluidity-and-in-search-of-balance/id/5033622. 15. Robbins, M. (2016). Is BB-8 a woman: why are we so determined to assign gender to AI?. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/science/the-lay-scientist/2016/feb/12/is-bb-8-a-woman-artificial-intelligence-gender-identity. 16. Bano, M. (2018). Artificial intelligence is demonstrating gender bias – and it’s our fault. [online] Kcl.ac.uk. Available at: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/news-article.aspx?id=c97f7c12-ae02-4394-8f84-31ba4d56ddf7.

17. Alumni.ox.ac.uk. (2018). Oxford Alumni / Alexa, does AI have gender?. [online] Available at: https://www.alumni.ox.ac.uk/quad/article/alexa-does-ai-have-gender.

18. Neff, G. (2018). Does AI have Gender?. 19. Stern, J. (2017). Alexa, Siri, Cortana: The Problem With All-Female Digital Assistants. [online] WSJ. Available at: https://www.wsj.com/articles/alexa-siri-cortana-the-problem-with-all-female-digital-assistants-1487709068?mod=rss_Technology. 20. LoCascio, R. (2018). Tech’s Future Is Female: Why Women Must Lead the AI Revolution. [online] Thriveglobal.com. Available at: https://thriveglobal.com/stories/tech-s-future-is-female-why-women-must-lead-the-ai-revolution/. 21. Winfield, A. (2016). Should robots be gendered? | Robohub. [online] Robohub.org. Available at: https://robohub.org/robots-should-not-be-gendered/. 22. World Economic Forum (2018). AI has a gender problem. Here’s what to do about it. [online] World Economic Forum. Available at: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/04/ai-has-a-gender-problem-heres-what-to-do-about-it/. 23. Penny, L. (2016). Why do we give robots female names? Because we don't want to consider their feelings. [online] Newstatesman.com. Available at: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/feminism/2016/04/why-do-we-give-robots-female-names-because-we-dont-want-consider-their. 24. Robert, L. (2017). The Growing Problem of Humanizing Robots. International Robotics & Automation Journal, 3(1).

25. You, S. and Robert, L. (2017). Emotional Attachment, Performance, and Viability in Teams Collaborating with Embodied Physical Action (EPA) Robots. Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 19(5), pp.377-407.

26. Robert L.P. and You, S. (2015). Subgroup Formation in Teams Working with Robots in the Extended Abstracts of the 33rd ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2015). South Korea, pp. 2097-2102.

http://www.onrec.com/news/statistics-and-trends/gen-z-most-concerned-about-robots-taking-their-jobs



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27. Carpenter, J. (2014). Just doesn’t look right: exploring the impact of humanoid robot integration into explosive ordnance disposal teams. In Robotics: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications. IGI Global, USA, pp. 1354-1380.

28. The Telegraph. (2018). How do we educate our robot citizens?. [online] Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/essential-insights/robot-citizens/. 29. Kovary, G. (2018). Gender Equality at Work and How Gen Z Feels About It | n-gen. [online] Ngenperformance.com. Available at: http://www.ngenperformance.com/blog/gen-z-2/gender-equality-at-work-and-how-gen-z-feels-about-it.

30. TheHill. (2018). Gender equality is good for business. [online] Available at: https://thehill.com/opinion/finance/377391-gender-equality-is-good-for-business. 31. Aune, K. (2018). Why feminism still matters to young people. [online] The Conversation. Available at: https://theconversation.com/why-feminism-still-matters-to-young-people-91299.

About the author

Ebba Engstrom [email protected]

Ebba Engstrom is an MPA Development,

Technology and Innovation Policy

graduate from University College

London, with a prior BSc (Honours)

background in Biotechnology from the

University of Edinburgh. She holds

multi-faceted experience and interest

within a variety of fields- including

agricultural development, innovation

policy, gender equality issues and urban

studies- and is a Youth-Ag Summit

alumni via Bayer Ag and recently sat as a

panellist regarding the SDGs at the

UNCTAD Youth Forum. Ebba has in prior

carried out research with focus on how

technologies and innovative concepts,

can pave way for development within

sectors such as agriculture- with an

attributed policy lens.


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Finance in the age of the Fourth Industrial

Revolution: How Technology and Finance are

already working together to shape the new

digital economy

By Jose Alvarez

Introduction Geneva, Switzerland; The week of

October 22nd through October 26th,

2018 –

These were the dates of the 2018 World

Investment Forum (WIF) hosted by the

UN Conference on Trade and

Development (UNCTAD) and the dates

2018 UNCTAD Youth Forum. Thousands

of people flew in during the week to

attend sessions to learn about the latest

developments in trade, investing,

finance and technology. Throughout

both the WIF sessions and the Youth

Forum session, one topic kept coming

up: The Fourth Industrial Revolution. In

an article posted by the World Economic

Forum, The Fourth Industrial Revolution

was described as “the advent of ‘cyber-

physical systems’ involving entirely new

capabilities for people and machines1.”

With any industrial revolution, as society

changes with the adoption of new

technology, so must the methods for

recording and reporting financial

transactions. The fourth industrial

revolution is particularly impactful in

that new technologies will make their

way into individuals’ hands across the

world faster than ever before. Below are

just some of the highlights on how the

Fourth Industrial revolution is already

having an impact on Businesses and

Consumers alike.

Financial Reporting

In a February 2017 article, The

International Federation of Accountants

identified that the accounting profession

would undergo tremendous change in

the next three decades attributed to

“evolving smart and digital technology,

continued globalization of

reporting/disclosure standards, and new

forms of regulation2.” Accounting and

financial reporting had been completed

manually for thousands of years until

the advent and subsequent adoption of

computer technology during the Third

Industrial revolution that began to

optimize financial reporting and thus

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change how accountants approached

their work. This trend continues to this

day. Accounting and financial reporting

software has evolved. Initially the

software offered could only be locally

hosted on a desktop or internal server

with access to view financial information

limited to only those in finance who

knew which parameters to adjust for the

desired reports to be run from these

systems3. The financial reporting

functions were very limited and there

were high costs to customizing the

software used. Today, there are a

number of cloud-based options that

provide customization to organizations

of every size. Software is no longer a

one-time purchase to be used on one

computer, but sold as a subscription

service3. Along with this change,

Accounting and financial reporting

software has become more varied and

accessible to more users than ever

before. Transactional data is being

stored in cloud based accounting

software as well as integrating with

other ERP systems to automatically sync.

Rather than having to manually record

transactional events such as payables,

receivables, payroll, taxes, depreciation

and other miscellaneous expense

allocations, there are options depending

on the system being used to either

customize a program or use a third party

software that will automate these

transactions and recording, giving

finance professionals more time to focus

on data integrity and analysis. These

enhancements to accounting and

financial reporting software are

changing how financial reports are able

to be analyzed. Auditors no longer have

to be on-site for their full engagements

if organizations have moved to

completely cloud based solutions. In the

non-profit world, funders can receive

real-time reports on how particular

projects are doing financially from the

other side of the world without having to

step foot on a plane to access that

information. Accounting software such

as Sage Intacct is even using technology

found on social media platforms to

transform how organizations

communicate about financial

transactions by allowing users to tag

other users and leave comments on

particular transactions or reports4. The

lines between technology and financial

reporting start to blur even further when

you consider the amount of raw data

finance professional have to handle on a

daily basis. The American Institute of

Certified Public Accountants has

encouraged students pursuing

accounting to start studying coding and

several financial reporting software even

allow users to create enhancements and

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build out modules that can then be

included in future updates and pushed

out to end users5.

Investing

Another area where the Fourth Industrial

Revolution is disrupting an industry is in

investing. Technological advances have

helped break down access barriers for

individuals and organizations alike by

automating financial advising and

lowering the amount of capital needed to

enter financial capital markets7. One

such platform is Betterment, an

investment platform that uses

automated algorithms to provide its user

financial advice tailored to each

individual user situation. In the past

year, Betterment became the first

independent financial advisor to reach

$10 billion USD in assets under

management7. Betterment’s success,

along with the success of other similar

online independent platforms has

spurred long-standing investment

companies and investment branches of

banks to develop their own automated

financial advisor platforms. Charles

Schwab, Black Rock and Deutsche Bank

have all taken steps to become more

competitive after platforms like

Betterment caused disruption to

traditional routes for individuals to

reach investment markets7. Another

investment platform, RobinHood,

presents a new set of opportunities for

individuals to be able to circumvent

traditional access to investment

markets. RobinHood is a mobile app

accessible only by mobile phone that

allows you to start trading NYSE and

NASDAQ listed stocks commission free

with an initial investment of $50 USD

and provides incentives such as free

stocks by sharing a custom invitation

link with friends7. Stash and Acorns ease

the barriers to access for individuals

even more by lowering the amount to

start an account to $5 USD. These apps

connect to users bank accounts and

round up each transaction to the nearest

dollar or currency equivalent. The

amount rounded up is then transferred

to an individual’s investment account in

each respective app for the individual to

be able to invest as they wish7. While the

platforms mentioned above focus

primarily on the US Markets, there is

increasing activity from emerging

markets as access to mobile phones and

data continue to increase. For example,

Saxo Bank started off as a small

brokerage over 19 years ago, but has

grown by tapping into early trends in

Globalization and Technology. While the

majority of Saxo Bank’s client still come

from developed countries, the brokerage

firm notes their digital strategies have

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resulted in four out every 10 customers

being located in developing countries6.

Given that more individuals worldwide

continue to gain access to data enable

mobile phones and that barriers to

access and transact in investment

markets continue to fall, we can expect

emerging markets to strengthen their

presence across the board as has

happened with Saxo Bank.

Consumer Purchases

Each industrial revolution has enhanced

how consumers paid for goods and

services. Consumers were either paying

for goods by exchanging services or

exchanging physical currency backed by

gold and silver for millennia. Paper

money back by government didn’t quite

take off until the renaissance which

brought an explosion of scientific,

artistic and technological advances to

Western Europe and the rest of the

world. This first industrial revolution

brought us the advent of Electronic

Funds Transfer in the 1860s, while it

took almost another century for credit

cards to be invented in 19468. Today’s

consumers have more options to pay for

purchases than ever before. Cash, Credit,

Debit, Contactless payments, and Mobile

wallets are all at the hands of today’s

consumers, giving them more choice

than ever before on how to pay goods.

Leaving your wallet at home has never

been easier with the proliferation of

payment Apps like Venmo, PayPal and

M-Pesa, which recently brokered a

partnership with PayPal that will connect

Kenya’s 27.8 million M-Pesa users to

PayPal’s 227 million users world wide9.

However, the future looks to take cash-

less transactions even further. The

Fourth Industrial Revolution has been

described as cyber-physical, blurring the

lines between what is strictly physical

and what is strictly digital in nature1.

Imagine being able to pay for goods

using with only a smile. While this may

sound like the future, there are

companies that already have this

technology in testing phases across the

world. AliBaba has partnered with KFC

for a facial recognition payments

program. Customers will to be able to

pay for their food by allowing kiosks to

scan their faces for unique biometric

markers that will then authorize the

transaction to be withdrawn from the

consumer’s AliPay digital wallet10.

Chinese companies have been working

on facial recognition technology to

improve its capacity to bring

convenience to individuals’ lives. Face++,

a Chinese startup, has partnered with

ride-hailing apps to allow for facial

recognition as credentials to call for a

ride and also uses this same technology

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to allow employees and visitors to enter

their offices without the need of an ID

badge12.Baidu, one of China’s largest

search engines is working on using their

facial recognition software to allow

users in its database to purchase rail

tickets solely through facial

recognition12. In the United States, while

the public has adopted facial recognition

technology through our phones; there is

one chain of restaurants that is

pioneering similar technology to allow

its customers to pay via smile,

CaliBurger. CaliBurger piloted their

facial recognition first in their Pasadena

store. Customers are able to create an

account with CaliBurger, upload a

picture and connect their private credit

card information so that they can use the

kiosks in store. Once at the kiosks and

customers have completed their order,

customers can choose the smile to pay

feature which will then scan and

compare the person’s face standing in

front of the kiosk to the profile picture

that was uploaded. CaliBurger

customers must then validate their

account by entering the 3 or 4 digit CVV

security code located on the back of their

credit card that they entered while

creating the account which will trigger

the credit card to be charged for a

delicious burger of the customer’s

choice11. Facial recognition payments

appear to be the new innovation with

Consumer purchases. Banking giant,

BBVA, announced back in June 2018 that

it was working on its own facial

recognition payment platform for mass

role out called “Selfie & Go13.” As the

market floods with innovations in cash-

less payments using biometric markers,

we can expect one to outshine the rest

and bring standardization to the mass

market upon adoption.

References 1. Nicholas Davis, World Economic Forum,

What is the fourth industrial revolution?, https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/what-is-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/, Jan 19, 2016

2. Muhammad Azizul Islam, PhD, International Federation of Accountants, Future of Accounting Profession: Three Major Changes and Implications for Teaching and Research, https://www.ifac.org/global-knowledge-gateway/business-reporting/discussion/future-accounting-profession-three-major, Feb 10, 2017

3. Aspiring Accountants, http://www.aspiringaccountants.co.uk/software-a-brief-history/, Aug 24, 2017

4. Sage Intacct, https://www.sageintacct.com/intacct-collaborate, 2018

5. AICPA, https://www.aicpa.org/interestareas/accountingeducation/newsandpublications/should-accounting-students-code.html, July 14, 2015

6. Oxford Economics, The New Digital Economy: How it will transform business, https://www.pwc.com/mt/en/publications/assets/the-new-digital-economy.pdf, June 2011

7. AxxSys Consulting, The Fourth Industrial Revolution: Impact on Financial Services, http://axxsysconsulting.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/FinTech-White-paper.pdf, Feb 2018

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/what-is-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/what-is-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/

https://www.ifac.org/global-knowledge-gateway/business-reporting/discussion/future-accounting-profession-three-major




http://www.aspiringaccountants.co.uk/software-a-brief-history/

http://www.aspiringaccountants.co.uk/software-a-brief-history/

https://www.sageintacct.com/intacct-collaborate

https://www.sageintacct.com/intacct-collaborate

https://www.aicpa.org/interestareas/accountingeducation/newsandpublications/should-accounting-students-code.html



https://www.pwc.com/mt/en/publications/assets/the-new-digital-economy.pdf




http://axxsysconsulting.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/FinTech-White-paper.pdf





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8. Rebecca Burn-Callander, The Guardian, The history of money: from barter to bitcoin, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/money/11174013/The-history-of-money-from-barter-to-bitcoin.html, Oct 20, 2014

9. Phillippe Le Houerou and Dan Schulman, World Economic Forum, Technology is delivering better access to financial services. Here’s how, https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/04/digital-finance-can-fight-poverty-heres-how/, Apr 20, 2018

10. Karen Gilchrist, CNBC, Alibaba launches ‘smile to pay’ facial recognition system at KFC in China, https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/04/alibaba-launches-smile-to-pay-facial-recognition-system-at-kfc-china.html, Sept 4, 2017

11. Catherine Clifford, CNBC, You can pay for your burger with your face at this fast food restaurant, thanks to A.I., https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/02/pay-with-facial-recognition-a-i-at-caliburger-in-pasadena-california.html, Feb 2, 2018

12. Will Knight, MIT Technology Review, Face-detecting systems in China now authorize payments, provide access to facilities, and track down criminals. Will other countries follow?, https://www.technologyreview.com/s/603494/10-breakthrough-technologies-2017-paying-with-your-face/, March/April 2017 Issue

13. BBVA, BBVA launches facial recognition payments, https://www.bbva.com/en/bbva-launches-facial-recognition-payments/, June 21, 2018

14. Jennifer Surane and Christopher Cannon, Bloomberg, Why China’s Payment Apps Give U.S. Bankers Nightmares, https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2018-payment-systems-china-usa/, May 23, 2018

About the Author

Jose Alvarez [email protected]

Jose Alvarez strives to save the world

one financial statement at a time.

Throughout his career, Jose has served

in positions of leadership for several

organizations whose missions share

similar goals to the UN's 17 Sustainable

Development Goals, particularly when it

comes to youth empowerment. By

improving financial workflows,

establishing financial frameworks for

social impact investing organizations

and NGOs and increasing financial

solvency through thorough financials

analysis, Jose has helped many

organizations thrive and carry out their

missions. In his spare time, Jose also

serves as the treasurer for a Washington,

DC based community-based

organization and stays active with

reading, Yoga and CrossFit.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/money/11174013/The-history-of-money-from-barter-to-bitcoin.html




https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/04/digital-finance-can-fight-poverty-heres-how/



https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/04/alibaba-launches-smile-to-pay-facial-recognition-system-at-kfc-china.html



https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/02/pay-with-facial-recognition-a-i-at-caliburger-in-pasadena-california.html



https://www.technologyreview.com/s/603494/10-breakthrough-technologies-2017-paying-with-your-face/



https://www.bbva.com/en/bbva-launches-facial-recognition-payments/

https://www.bbva.com/en/bbva-launches-facial-recognition-payments/

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2018-payment-systems-china-usa/

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2018-payment-systems-china-usa/


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Blockchain, new symbol of disruption?

By Smriti Sonam

Introduction

When we talk about Blockchain first

thing that comes to our mind is Bitcoin.

But Blockchain is more than Bitcoin and

much larger Bitcoin. Bitcoin is

cryptographic currency recognized by

the European Court of Justice in 2015. It

cannot exist without Blockchain. But

thanks to Bitcoin that in recent past due

to its aggressive and sudden popularity

drew some lime lights towards

Blockchain as well.

Blockchain like Big Data is a vision of

storage and use of data, they both are

two models of interconnections and

communications. Many experts today

seize these topics to explore the

emergence of new uses of today and

tomorrow revealed by advanced digital

advances, in order to model and then

experiment with new systems that will

bring breakthrough solutions to

customers with very high added value.

The Blockchain in a few words

Blockchain is an open source technology

for storing and transmitting

information . A distributed public

database, unalterable, anonymous and

governed through a democratic

functioning. In a layman’s terms it’s like

a huge excel sheet that runs on millions

of computers. Blockchain genome is

divided into three parts.

It is transparent: Blockchain is an open

source medium. All transactions are

registered and accessible to anyone and

all at any time. Also anyone can change

the underlying codes and everyone can

see all the change activities.

It is distributed: Without a control organ,

shared between its different users and

kept up to date collectively. There exist

no intermediaries to authenticate or

establish a transaction.

It is secure: The corollary of its two

specificities

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.(What is Blockchain Technology? A Step-by-Step Guide For Beginners, 2018)

Therefore, it is a matter of trust, born

from the communion of the gradual

dematerialization of money and the

crisis of confidence in any form of

elitism and regulation.

This technology is based on the "Peer-to-

Peer" model, eliminating any central

server and allows a user to register a

transaction with another user via the

network directly without any

intermediary.

Where Blockchain finds its place in real

world?

Among all uses, usage sharing is the one

that is best identified today. In Future all

the underutilized assets will be

transformed into income: carpools,

parking spaces, temporarily empty

apartments.

More widely, this would affect

intellectual property. Without

considering the benefit of an

intermediary, the Blockchain can seduce

cultural creators by providing them with

direct and transparent remuneration.

We are also talking about crowdfunding

3.0, where the Blockchain replaces the

current regulators who are paying an

average of 5 to 8% on the sums collected,

which drastically reduces these

connection costs.

In the medical field, this would be a way

to give patients back control over their

personal data. The areas of development

in e-health are still to be exploited

especially on the democratization of

teleconsultation, which aims to

overcome the lack of doctors.

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Newborns of the 21st century,

Blockchain and Connected Objects can

work together. Connected objects would

communicate with each other directly

following a peer-to-peer trust

transaction from object to object.

A connected object could decide to buy

assets necessary for its functioning or

that of its ecosystem. A connected light

bulb would command its replacement at

the first signs of end of life and the

Blockchain would store the transactions

between the connected object and the

Marketplace.

There is a gargantuan potential in this

technology. Blockchain has proven

beneficial for activities that are

dependent on transparent and secured

mode of functioning. For example,

financial transactions, government

documents, charity fund dispersal,

medical records, human aid and relief

funds are some such areas, which

blooms best only when principles or

transparency and security are applied.

Some known banking organisations have

already started building their own

Blockchain infrastructures. Countries

like Sweden has even started testing its

Blockchain system for land registry

(Vilner, 2018) .

Looking at recent market corrections,

upcoming regulations, and accelerated

adoption of the technology by global

institutions all point at an ongoing

“normalization” of Blockchain. The

market is beginning to speculate less

and projects are finding actual use. All

these make Blockchain a safer bet for

users and investors alike (Vilner, 2018)

The Paradox:

The network nodes (called miners) that

validate the transactions are chosen

according to their computing power and

remunerated accordingly. The

Blockchain distribution is therefore

based on the centralization of a

computing power.

If Blockchain provides an answer to the

security problem that Big Data is facing,

but if majority of its users become

corrupt then the security inherent in

Blockchain’s democratic functioning

may prove to be illusory and

compromise its integrity.

Blockchain is immutable. Since its

creation, all information is encrypted

and registered, so there is no deletion of

information. This poses a long term

“The value of an idea lies in

the using of it.”

Thomas Edison

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storage problem. What about the

environmental issues, energy crises and

right to be forgotten?

Blockchain projects and unchangeable

and irreversible method or

working. What would happen if the

claims in the records were fraudulent or

simply wrong? While the Blockchain

upsets the role of trusted third parties,

would it finally need guarantors?

Like theses are some other more burning

questions that challenges existence of

this powerful technology , and they are

quite thought provocative.

Today Blockchain technology is

unanimously recognized for its

potential, and despite an upsurge in

investment and proof of concept work, it

is still in its infancy and is gradually

becoming the technology that some have

already announced as the new major

digital revolution from the Internet.

References

Vilner. (2018). South Korea Is Cementing Its Place As A Global Blockchain Leader.

What is Blockchain Technology? A Step-by-Step Guide For Beginners. (2018).

About the author

Smriti Sonam [email protected]

A new age thinker and a human right

defender – Smriti believes in the

power of multi-perspective thinking

and creative problem solving. A

Business Project Manager by

profession Smriti is also passionately

involved in projects at United

Nations. As AFI (ECOSOC)

representative, she has represented

UN Global Youth at the United

Nations and has been involved in

Human Rights activities for more

than 5 years. Recently she also

headed a delegation as AFI (ECOSOC)

representative at the European

Parliament for European Youth Event

2018.

Immensely passionate about youth

issues Smriti also co-chaired the

Right to Youth Development Summit

held in 2013 and 2014 at UN in

Geneva. She has been involved and is


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working on the development of the

Human Rights Council at the Palais

des Nations. In years 2015 and 2016,

she co-organized International Youth

Summits at UN in Geneva, attracting

participation of delegates from

several countries. Smriti’s endeavors

focus on the areas of importance to

young people in the context of

development. Bringing youth issues

to the forefront of United Nations,

specializing in business

development, employment, and

slavery & trafficking.

Smriti is an alumnus of Grenoble

School of Management. An Engineer

in Biotechnology, she is also a

qualified Management Consultant

with an extensive work experience of

more than nine years in IT and

Consulting. She excels in Product

Management and Strategy in IT.

Currently based in Nice, she works as

a Business Project Manager in Travel

Technology. She is a trained Indian

Dancer who enjoys traveling and

exploring new cultures. Her motto in

life is – To create growth

opportunities for all.

AFI CHANGEMAKERS AND

UNCTAD YOUTH SUMMIT Report to the

UNITED NATIONS ON

TECHNOLOGY

ISBN: 978-0-9990239-5-2

© Ariel Foundation International, December 2018

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