January 15, 2025

Susquehanna University will host Erin Reddick, founder and CEO of ChatBlackGPT, as the keynote speaker for MLK Winter Convocation. The annual event traditionally welcomes new and students to campus for the spring semester and celebrates the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Reddick will deliver the lecture From Civil Rights to Digital Rights: How Black Technologists are Shaping the Future of AI at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 20, in the Degenstein Center Theater in the Charles B. Degenstein Campus Center.

As artificial intelligence increasingly shapes the way we live, work and interact, the question of who controls and develops these technologies has never been more important. Reddick’s lecture will explore the parallels between historic civil rights struggles and today’s fight for digital equity, emphasizing the importance of Black representation in addressing algorithmic bias and preventing the reinforcement of systemic inequalities.

An artificial intelligence cultural technologist, Reddick founded ChatBlackGPT, a culturally inclusive platform providing perspectives from the Black and African American communities. With a career encompassing significant roles at major tech companies, including Meta, Microsoft and AWS, Reddick’s journey in tech ­— marked by her identity as a Black woman — led her to become a certified ChatGPT expert and prompt engineer with the goal of addressing the racial biases she found present in AI.