KENTARO TOYAMA

Based on his research, Kentaro promotes the theory that for the most part, technology amplifies underlying human forces -- improving things where individuals and institutions are well-intentioned and capable, but having little or negative impact where human forces are indifferent, dysfunctional, or corrupt. Often, technology amplifies the impact of good, bad, left, right, optimistic, and pessimistic human inclinations simultaneously, leading to society's deeply ambivalent relationship with technology. Amplification offers a predictive, balanced alternative to theories that suggest that technology's impact on society is always good, or always bad, or always too complex to capture concisely... Previously, Kentaro was a researcher at UC Berkeley and assistant managing director of Microsoft Research India, which he co-founded in 2005. At MSR India, he played a key role in the lab's growth, overseeing a variety of functions as it grew to over 60 full-time research staff. He also..

Primary location: Ann Arbor United States