The Risk Decisions Behind AI: Human dynamics, Trade-offs, Blind Spots, and What Comes Next | AI Boston Week 2025 - October 1

​The Risk Decisions Behind AI: Human dynamics, Trade-offs, Blind Spots, and What Comes Next
October 1 | AI Boston Week 2025 

​Panel:
A cross-sector panel of experts from industry, research, and government will share firsthand insights  from building, governing, and deploying AI systems:

• ​Michael Muller – Researcher and Inventor @ IBM

• ​David Piorkowski – Human-AI Collaboration and Governance @ IBM

• ​Sabrina Mansur – Director @ MA AI Hub

​Overview:
Which AI risks actually matter most—and how do people decide what to do about them?

​As AI systems scale, conversations around risk often remain abstract. Terms like misinformation, bias, misuse, and system failure are widely acknowledged—but the harder questions about prioritization and trade-offs and timing are frequently left unaddressed.

​In the real world, AI teams are constantly making decisions under pressure: Which risks should be mitigated now? Which can be monitored? And which—at least for the moment—can be ignored?

​This session goes beyond the buzzwords to examine the human dynamics behind AI risk decisions. Together, we’ll explore:

• ​How incentives from regulators, investors, and markets influence risk priorities

• ​Where human blind spots, heuristics, and cognitive biases complicate safety efforts

• ​What “human-in-the-loop” oversight looks like in practice—and how it affects accountability as AI agents take on more autonomy

• ​The real-world strategies emerging to navigate trade-offs between safety, innovation, and scale

​What to Expect:
This interactive session invites attendees to step into the role of AI decision-makers. You’ll face real-world constraints, allocate limited “risk budgets,” and navigate dilemmas that teams face every day. Expect thought-provoking exercises that reveal how values, constraints, and competing incentives shape the future of AI safety.

​Agenda:

• ​Welcome & Networking

• ​Panel Discussion

• ​Get Involved: Opportunities to Collaborate on Aethos Research

• ​Decision Lab: AI in practice

  • ​Thought-provoking scenarios

  • ​Hands-on exercises

  • ​A deeper look at how values, constraints, and incentives collide in the work of building safe, responsible AI

​Join Us:
This session is for anyone curious about how real AI risk decisions are made not just in theory, but in practice.. You'll hear from experts, take part in hands-on activities, and walk away with a better understanding of the challenges and trade-offs behind building safe and responsible AI.

​We hope to see you there!