Latest news with #forAIandHumanity
Los Angeles Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Netflix chairman Reed Hastings joins board of AI giant Anthropic
Netflix Chairman Reed Hastings is joining the board of San Francisco-based artificial intelligence company Anthropic. Anthropic, valued at $61.5 billion after its most recent funding round in March, is known for its AI chatbot model Claude. 'Anthropic is very optimistic about the AI benefits for humanity, but is also very aware of the economic, social, and safety challenges,' Hastings said. 'I'm joining Anthropic's board because I believe in their approach to AI development, and to help humanity progress.' Netflix is one of the world's most prolific producers of movies and TV shows, known for its content recommendation algorithm. Hollywood is grappling with the implications of generative artificial intelligence, which studios believe could save money and time, but also comes with downsides. Labor groups fear job displacement, and there are also concerns about the use of copyrighted material when training AI models. Hastings was selected by Anthropic's Long Term Benefit Trust, which the company describes as 'five financially disinterested members' that can select and remove a portion of the board. The group selected Hastings because of his leadership experience, philanthropic work and 'commitment to addressing AI's societal challenges makes him uniquely qualified to guide Anthropic at this critical juncture in AI development,' said Buddy Shah, chair of Anthropic's Long Term Benefit Trust, in a statement. Hastings will join the company's five-member board, which includes Anthropic Chief Executive Dario Amodei, President Daniela Amodei, investor Yasmin Razavi and Jay Kreps, CEO of Mountain View-based data streaming firm Confluent. Hastings served as CEO or co-CEO of Netflix for 25 years until 2023. He currently serves on the boards of other organizations including Bloomberg, the financial data and media company. He has donated money to charter school networks serving low-income U.S. communities and recently gave $50 million to Bowdoin College to establish the Hastings Initiative for AI and Humanity that aims to help the school provide ethical frameworks for AI and examine AI's impact on work and education.
Forbes
24-03-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Reed Hastings Gives Bowdoin College $50 Million, Its Largest Gift Ever
Netflix founder Reed Hastings has made a $50 million gift to his alma mater, Bowdoin College. (Photo ... More by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) Netflix cofounder Reed Hastings has given Bowdoin College a $50 million gift. The donation is the largest in the institution's 231-year history and will be used to create the Hastings Initiative for AI and Humanity. The funding will be used initially to: 'We are thrilled and so grateful to receive this remarkable support from Reed, who shares our conviction that the AI revolution makes the liberal arts and a Bowdoin education more essential to society,' said Bowdoin College President Safa Zaki in a news release. Zaki is a psychologist whose research focuses on building and testing computational models of the mind. The funds from Hastings will support Bowdoin's current and new faculty who want to explore the pedagogical and scholarship questions that are being generated by the AI revolution. 'This donation seeks to advance Bowdoin's mission of cultivating wisdom for the common good by deepening the College's engagement with one of humanity's most transformative developments: artificial intelligence,' said Hastings, who followed his graduation from Bowdoin in 1983 by earning his MSc in artificial intelligence at Stanford University in 1988. Between Bowdoin and Stanford, Hastings was a Peace Corps high school math teacher in Swaziland. 'As AI becomes smarter than humans, we are going to need some deep thinking to keep us flourishing. I know Bowdoin can make a significant contribution to these fundamental issues, and that President Zaki, a cognitive scientist, can lead the way,' he added. Zaki said that Bowdoin was 'ideally positioned to meet the challenges and opportunities of AI,' citing its 'deep commitment to the liberal arts and the common good.' She noted that "Ethics, human values, and human understanding should inform the technological progress, scientific advancements, and new norms that will emerge from this revolution. As educators, we have a moral imperative to do this work.' About Reed Hastings After his graduation from Bowdoin, where he was encouraged to study AI by the late professor of mathematics Steve Fisk, Hastings cofounded Netflix in 1997, building the company into the world's leading internet television network. He became executive chairman in 2023 after twenty-five years as CEO. Forbes pegs Hastings's current worth at $5.5 billion. Hastings served on the California State Board of Education from 2000 to 2004, and he's currently on the board of several educational organizations including KIPP and Pahara. He is also a board member of The City Fund and Bloomberg.
