Linda Wen

Linda Wen is a design researcher on the Game Intelligence team at Microsoft Research Redmond. She is passionate about creating safe and responsible AI technology that is accessible to everyone, regardless of their abilities, socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, gender, or countries of origin. Currently, Linda leads UX research on an interdisciplinary team focused on developing generative AI models for gaming. She is excited about AI’s potential to empower game creators worldwide, enabling them to tell their unique stories. Previously, she worked on the Teachable AI Experiences team, where she designed personalized accessibility solutions for blind and low-vision users leveraging the power of AI.

Linda holds a Master of Science degree in design engineering from Imperial College London and a Master of Art degree in global innovation design from the Royal College of Art. She studied international relations and linguistics for her undergraduate degree at Pomona College in Los Angeles.

Talk Title

Designing AI for Human Agency

Talk Summary

In this talk, I will share my experience as a design researcher working on an interdisciplinary AI research team to develop innovative AI systems. I will discuss how we can build AI that not only pushes the boundaries of technology but also places human agency, safety and fairness front and centre. 

I will share two projects: the first one focuses on a generative AI model designed to support game creators with ideation, enhancing their creative processes through generating consistent, diverse, and user-modifiable gameplay sequences. The second project is a teachable AI system that assists people who are blind or have low vision in locating personal objects, emphasizing the opportunity AI brings to accessibility.

This talk has been organised in partnership with the I-X Women in AI Network (IX-WAI). These events are open to everyone, regardless of gender, and we encourage all to attend for insightful discussions and workshops. 

For this seminar, IX-WAI will sponsor a networking lunch with the speaker for four women or non-binary individuals on a first-come, first-served basis. If there are no internal sign-ups, the spots will be made available to everyone. To sign up for the networking lunch, please email laburton@ic.ac.uk by midday on Monday 2 December. Given the reduced size of this networking lunch, please do not sign up unless you are sure you can attend, and if your circumstance change, let us know as soon as possible.