The Urgent Need for Verifiable Data in the Age of AI
Beyond Trust: The FTX Collapse and the Importance of Data Integrity
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As artificial intelligence (AI) rapidly advances, ensuring the accuracy and trustworthiness of data becomes paramount. Scott Dykstra, CTO and co-founder of Space and Time, emphasizes this critical need in a recent episode of TheTrendyType’s Chain Reaction podcast. He highlights the FTX collapse as a stark reminder of the dangers of manipulating data, even within seemingly reputable institutions.
Dykstra draws a parallel between FTX’s fraudulent practices and the potential for malicious actors to manipulate data in any industry. “There’s an incentive for financial institutions to want to manipulate their data… we see it on a regular basis,” he states. This underscores the urgent need for robust mechanisms to verify information and prevent such manipulation.
Zero-Knowledge Proofs: A Solution for Trustworthy Data
Dykstra proposes zero-knowledge proofs (ZK proofs) as a powerful solution to this challenge. ZK proofs allow one party to prove to another that they possess certain information without revealing the information itself. Imagine needing to verify someone’s credit score – a ZK proof could confirm it’s above 700 without disclosing the actual number.
Space and Time aims to become the go-to platform for verifiable computing in Web3 by indexing data both on-chain and off-chain. This approach ensures transparency and immutability, fostering trust within the ecosystem.
The Future of AI: Verifiable Data is Key
Dykstra expresses concern about the lack of verifiability in AI data. “I’m quite worried that we’re not really well ever going to be able to verify that an LLM was executed accurately,” he admits.
He envisions a decentralized, globally accessible database powered by blockchain technology to address this issue. This would ensure transparency and prevent any single entity from controlling the flow of information. For example, in the realm of journalism, Dykstra proposes a community-owned and operated database for articles, ensuring uncensorable access to information.
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