Responsible AI in Action EP 15 | Human Agency & Culturally Attuned AI | Dr. Kem-Laurin Lubin

AI is giving us more—but what is it taking away? Here’s what you need to understand. As organizations race to adopt AI, we focus on speed, efficiency, and output. But what happens to human judgment, decision-making, and cultural context in the process? In Episode 15 of Responsible AI in Action, Charles Dimov speaks with Dr. Kem-Laurin Lubin, University of Waterloo about human agency in the age of AI, and why responsible AI must start long before deployment. From values embedded in system design to the risks of algorithmic characterization, this conversation surfaces the deeper trade-offs most organizations aren’t considering. What You’ll Learn: Why AI systems don’t just support decisions—they can replace human judgment How human agency is gradually eroded through everyday AI interactions Why responsible AI must begin before procurement, not after deployment The concept of a values audit and why every AI system carries embedded perspectives How algorithmic characterization influences hiring, finance, and opportunity Why AI is not neutral and often reflects dominant cultural assumptions What culturally attuned AI looks like in global and community contexts Why technologists need a Hippocratic oath for AI design The long-term risks of normalizing data exposure and loss of privacy Guest: Dr. Kem-Laurin Lubin | Researcher, Designer, Professor, University of Waterloo -- Dr. Lubin’s work explores the intersection of AI, design research, and computational rhetoric, focusing on how systems encode values, shape judgment, and impact real human lives. Chapters 00:00 Introduction 01:00 Why procurement is already too late 06:00 Human agency and AI interaction 10:00 Algorithmic characterization explained 14:30 What culturally attuned AI really means 19:00 A Hippocratic oath for technologists 23:00 Data privacy and normalization of exposure 24:00 Closing thoughts #ResponsibleAI #AIethics #HumanCenteredAI #AIGovernance #DigitalTransformation