Keynote Talks

From Social Media Mining to Generative AI: New Challenges

Abstract

We present emerging opportunities in AI and Big Data, through the lens of social media. Generative AI, in particular, Large Language Models (LLMs), has added new challenges. We use examples to illustrate (1) fundamental problems associated with multi-modal data like social media, challenging common practice and existential understanding in machine learning and data mining, (2) how we embrace the power of LLMs to solve perplexing problems, and (3) developing novel algorithms for responsible LLMs. Seeking interdisciplinary collaborations, we contemplate the promising future of social media mining in the rapid development of AI. 

Short Bio

Dr. Huan Liu is a Regents Professor and Ira A. Fulton professor of Computer Science and Engineering at Arizona State University. He is the recipient of the ACM SIGKDD 2022 Innovation Award for his outstanding contributions to the foundation, principles, and applications of social media mining and feature selection for data Mining. He co-authored the textbook, Social Media Mining: An Introduction, by Cambridge University Press. He is Editor in Chief of ACM TIST, Founding Field Chief Editor of Frontiers in Big Data, its Specialty Chief Editor of Data Mining and Management, and a founding organizer of the International Conference Series on Social Computing, Behavioral-Cultural Modeling, and Prediction. He is a Fellow of ACM, AAAI, AAAS, and IEEE.  

Factuality Challenges in the Era of Large Language Models: Can we Keep LLMs Safe and Factual?

Abstract

We will discuss the risks, the challenges, and the opportunities that Large Language Models (LLMs) bring regarding factuality. We will then delve into our recent work on using LLMs for fact-checking, on detecting machine-generated text, and on fighting the ongoing misinformation pollution with LLMs. We will also discuss work on safeguarding LLMs, and the safety mechanisms we incorporated in Jais-chat, the world's best open Arabic-centric foundation and instruction-tuned LLM, based on our Do-Not-Answer dataset. Finally, we will present a number of LLM fact-checking tools recently developed at MBZUAI: (i) LM-Polygraph, a tool to predict an LLM's uncertainty in its output using cheap and fast uncertainty quantification techniques, (ii) Factcheck-Bench, a fine-grained evaluation benchmark and framework for fact-checking the output of LLMs, (iii) Loki, an open-source tool for fact-checking the output of LLMs, developed based on Factcheck-Bench and optimized for speed and quality, (iv) OpenFactCheck, a framework for fact-checking LLM output, for building customized fact-checking systems, and for benchmarking LLMs for factuality, and (v) LLM-DetectAIve, a tool for machine-generated text detection.

Short Bio

Preslav Nakov is Professor and Department Chair for NLP at the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence. He is part of the core team that developed Jais, the world's best open-source Arabic-centric LLM, as well as part of the LLM360 team at MBZUAI. Previously, he was Principal Scientist at the Qatar Computing Research Institute, HBKU, where he led the Tanbih mega-project, developed in collaboration with MIT, which aims to limit the impact of "fake news", propaganda and media bias by making users aware of what they are reading, thus promoting media literacy and critical thinking. He received his PhD degree in Computer Science from the University of California at Berkeley, supported by a Fulbright grant. He is Chair of the European Chapter of the Association for Computational Linguistics (EACL), Secretary of ACL SIGSLAV, and Secretary of the Truth and Trust Online board of trustees. Formerly, he was PC chair of ACL 2022, and President of ACL SIGLEX. He is also member of the editorial board of several journals including Computational Linguistics, TACL, ACM TOIS, IEEE TASL, IEEE TAC, CS&L, NLE, AI Communications, and Frontiers in AI. He authored a Morgan & Claypool book on Semantic Relations between Nominals, two books on computer algorithms, and 250+ research papers. He received a Best Paper Award at ACM WebSci'2022, a Best Long Paper Award at CIKM'2020, a Best Resource Paper Award at EACL'2024, a Best Demo Paper Award (Honorable Mention) at ACL'2020, a Best Task Paper Award (Honorable Mention) at SemEval'2020, a Best Poster Award at SocInfo'2019, and the Young Researcher Award at RANLP’2011. He was also the first to receive the Bulgarian President's John Atanasoff award, named after the inventor of the first automatic electronic digital computer. His research was featured by over 100 news outlets, including Reuters, Forbes, Financial Times, CNN, Boston Globe, Aljazeera, DefenseOne, Business Insider, MIT Technology Review, Science Daily, Popular Science, Fast Company, The Register, WIRED, and Engadget, among others.

Content Moderation Under the Digital Services Act (DSA): Tackling Misinformation and Disinformation

Abstract

The Digital Services Act (DSA) represents a landmark shift in how online platforms are regulated in the EU. A key aspect of the DSA is its framework for combating misinformation and disinformation, requiring platforms to implement risk assessment and mitigation strategies. The talk will delve into the responsibility of Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs), under the act, towards prevention of systemic spread of harmful content. The speaker will discuss the provisions of audits, data access, and algorithmic accountability that enable more consistent scrutiny of false narratives under the law. The talk will further critically evaluate the role of DSA in enhancing user rights through procedural safeguards and its transnational application.

Short Bio

Dr. Ritumbra Manuvie is an Assistant Professor at the University of Groningen, where her teaching and research looks at the intersection of law, politics and digital technologies. Dr. Manuvie has contributed to and published interdisciplinary work on content moderation utilising computational methods, and also qualitative methods. She is also founding director of diaspora-led non-profit through which she is directly involved in advocating for digital rights and tech accountability in Europe and India.