Investing in applied artificial intelligence (AI) without understanding the underlying mathematical foundations is like investing in biotech without understanding biology. Join University of Chicago Professor of Statistics and Computer Science Rebecca Willett and learn how mathematics is having a tremendous impact on AI and machine learning. In this engaging, hands-on presentation, Dr. Willett will highlight the core mathematical ideas underlying AI and their impacts on applications, including an exploration of the basics of learning, how Netflix decides what movie to recommend next, how ChatGPT writes stories, how AI helps predict weather more accurately, and how math and statistics help protect fairness and privacy in AI systems.

A talk given at The National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) on June 4, 2025.

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