S3. Rethinking Big/Tech: Uber Case Study
What happens when tech innovations lead to real-world crimes? When the stakes are at their highest, can government agencies be relied on to bring Big Tech to account? In our second episode of Season 3 of the Copenhagen Legal/Tech Lab Podcast, we explore a fascinating case study of Big Tech accountability with PhD Candidate Helen Stamp of the UWA Tech & Policy Lab at the University of Western Australia Law School. Join us as Helen discusses her detailed research into the police investigation that followed the fatal collision between an Uber autonomous vehicle and pedestrian Elaine Herzberg in Arizona in 2018. Learn more about how Uber shaped this investigation and how, despite Uber’s “non-existent safety culture” and deeply flawed vehicle programming, all criminal responsibility fell to the person nominally behind the wheel – the so-called “vehicle operator”. As we revisit the world’s most infamous autonomous vehicle tragedy, we probe two essential questions: how did Uber evade criminal liability, and should it have? Helen Stamp is in discussion in this episode with Copenhagen Legal/Tech Lab Director Alexandra Andhov at the University of Copenhagen, Faculty of Law. A big thanks again to UWA Tech & Policy Lab Directors Julia Powles and Jacqueline Alderson for their leadership of the Lab’s research program and for making this season possible, and a shoutout to our supporters, Carlsberg Foundation and Independent Research Fund Denmark. #TechLaw #BigTech #RethinkingBigTech #Podcast #TechPolicy #Uber #Herzberg #TechCulpability