What Is Martti Ahtisaari's Vision For Peacemaking? CMI's Peace Talks podcast

Artificial intelligence is evolving at an unprecedented pace—what does that mean for the future of technology, venture capital, business, and even our understanding of ourselves? Award-winning journalist and writer Anil Ananthaswamy joins us for our latest episode to discuss his latest book Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI . Anil helps us explore the journey and many breakthroughs that have propelled machine learning from simple perceptrons to the sophisticated algorithms shaping today’s AI revolution, powering GPT and other models. The discussion aims to demystify some of the underlying mathematical concepts that power modern machine learning, to help everyone grasp this technology impacting our lives–even if your last math class was in high school. Anil walks us through the power of scaling laws, the shift from training to inference optimization, and the debate among AI’s pioneers about the road to AGI—should we be concerned, or are we still missing key pieces of the puzzle? The conversation also delves into AI’s philosophical implications—could understanding how machines learn help us better understand ourselves? And what challenges remain before AI systems can truly operate with agency? If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. Sign up for our newsletter at techsurgepodcast.com for exclusive insights and updates on upcoming TechSurge Live Summits. Links: Read Why Machines Learn, Anil’s latest book on the math behind AI https://www.amazon.com/Why-Machines-Learn-Elegant-Behind/dp/0593185749 Learn more about Anil Ananthaswamy’s work and writing https://anilananthaswamy.com/ Watch Anil Ananthaswamy’s TED Talk on AI and intelligence https://www.ted.com/speakers/anil_ananthaswamy Discover the MIT Knight Science Journalism Fellowship that shaped Anil’s AI research https://ksj.mit.edu/ Understand the Perceptron, the foundation of neural networks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perceptron Read about the Perceptron Convergence Theorem and its significance https://www.nature.com/articles/323533a0…

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How spiking food prices could increase instability in the Middle East and North Africa? 37:41

vor 3 years37:41

37:41

Global food prices are spiking due to the war in Ukraine. There are growing fears that this could destabilise countries in the Middle East and North Africa, bringing back memories of how rising food prices played a role in Arab Spring uprisings a decade ago. What are the linkages between food security and conflicts? How countries in the Mena region could become more resilient to such shocks as the war we’re now witnessing? These are some of the questions we’re going to discuss in this episode of CMI’s Peace Talks. Our guests today are Wolfgang Mühlberger, CMI’s Senior Advisor for the Middle East and North Africa, and Heidi Olli, Partnerships Officer at the World Food Programme.…

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Women representatives and their constituencies: Building support for a more durable peace 50:44

vor 4 years50:44

50:44

The interaction between women representatives and their own communities is one reason why women’s inclusion is seen to lead to more durable peace agreements. In this episode, we discuss concrete strategies to build linkages between these two, drawing on experiences from Palestine, Yemen and Northern Ireland. The topic is timely as digitalisation and the rise of different social movements underline the need to make peace processes more democratic. Guests are Heba Zayyan, the Head of UN Women Sub-office in Gaza; Kawkab Al-Thaibani, the co-founder of the Women for Yemen network; Dr Catherine Turner, Associate Professor at the Durham Law School. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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Renewed hope for peace in Libya 10 years after the revolution 1:00:44

vor 4 years1:00:44

1:00:44

It has been 10 years since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in Libya. The end of Gaddafi’s four-decade rule held the promise of a better future, but many dreams remain unfulfilled as the country has been caught up in constant turmoil. Still, as Libya marks this 10th anniversary, there is renewed hope for peace. The recent election of a unified interim government could bring a long-standing political stalemate between rival factions to an end. How to make the most of this opportunity to build peace? What needs to change so that the next 10 years would look brighter for the country? Guests are Saana Keskitalo, Senior Manager of CMI’s Libya project, and Wolfgang Mühlberger, CMI’s Senior Advisor for the Middle East and North Africa. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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How can peace mediation stay relevant in the post-Covid-19 world? 56:39

vor 4 years56:39

56:39

The coronavirus crisis is speeding up the emergence of a new world order that shakes the very foundations of global peace and security. At the same time rapid technological change gives new tools to advance and fuel conflicts. In this exclusive episode of CMI's Peace Talks for the Geneva Peace Week 2020, we ask how peace mediation can adapt to this new reality. Guests are Annette Idler, Director of Studies at the Changing Character of War Programme at the University of Oxford, Jean-Marc Rickli, Head of Global Risk and Resilience at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP), and CMI’s Programme Director Ville Brummer. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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What is Martti Ahtisaari's vision for peacemaking? 39:30

vor 4 years39:30

39:30

We at CMI believe that the vision of Nobel Peace Laureate Martti Ahtisaari is increasingly needed for peace mediation to meet future challenges. But what is Ahtisaari's legacy to peacemaking and in which ways his principles are still relevant in the decade? On the occasion of our 20th anniversary, CMI's Peace Talks takes a closer look at the vision of the man who established the organisation. Guests are Roxana Cristescu, Head of CMI’s Programme in Eurasia and the Director of EU relations, and Kai Sauer, Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and CMI board member. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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How can peace mediation build more sustainable societies? 56:03

vor 5 years56:03

56:03

The coronavirus pandemic is making the world even more fragile in a situation where violent conflicts are being increasingly recognised as one of the main hurdles to sustainable development. What is the role of effective peace mediation in building more sustainable societies? Could the Covid-19 crisis produce real change in terms of how the international community and individual countries should address different vulnerabilities? This episode focuses on the cases of Yemen and Libya as examples of countries where continuous violence has pushed back development. Guests are Abdulghani AI-Iryani, Senior Researcher at the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies, and Maruan El-Krekshi, Head of CMI’s Middle East and North Africa team. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä. This episode is a part of our 20th anniversary campaign to raise awareness on themes that we consider critical for successful peacemaking now and in the future.…

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20 years on: It’s about time we walk the talk on women’s role in peacemaking 41:20

vor 5 years41:20

41:20

It’s been 20 years since the United Nations Security Council adopted a landmark resolution to strengthen women’s role in peacemaking. Still, after two decades, there are far more ball-point pens and middle-aged men present at the peace table than women. Why the progress has been so slow and how, above all, to walk the talk and turn words into concrete action? Guests are Anne Meskanen, Leading Expert in the Department for Africa and the Middle East at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, and Itonde Kakoma, CMI’s Programme Director. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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The realignment of global affairs 36:10

vor 5 years36:10

36:10

The end of the American century, challenges to multilateralism, decrease in democracies, rising authoritarian regimes, and ever-increasing unpredictability. What is going on in the world at the moment? In this episode CMI’s Communications Director Elina Lehtinen and Programme Director Itonde Kakoma discuss the US foreign policy, the realignment of global affairs, and why we should pay close attention to Africa.…

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Cyber attacks and wars fought with proxies: How can peacemakers respond to challenges posed by hybrid influencing? 46:04

vor 6 years46:04

46:04

Foreign meddling in elections, cyber attacks and wars fought with proxies on the battlefield. Hybrid influencing has caught the headlines in recent years. Blurring the lines between war and peace and resorting to a variety of actors and methods, hybrid operations make conflicts more complex and unpredictable. In this episode, we discuss how peacemakers can deal with some of the challenges posed by hybrid influencing. Guests are Ed Marques, CMI’s Interim Head for Middle East and North Africa, and Mika Kerttunen, Adjunct Professor for Military Strategy at the Finnish National Defence University. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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Unraveling the relationship between climate change and conflicts 30:11

vor 6 years30:11

30:11

By 2050, extreme heat can make parts of the Middle East impossible to live in. Millions of people would have to find themselves a new home. This is just one example of how climate change can add to instability in the world. In this episode, CMI's Project Officer Maria Ristimäki and Fundraising Manager and climate change activist Niklas Kaskeala take a good look at the links between climate change and conflicts and discuss what can be done to tackle the problem. Podcast is hosted by Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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How to support the fragile peace process in Yemen? 30:33

vor 6 years30:33

30:33

The devastating war in Yemen has already lasted four years. Recently the United Nations warned that the death toll of the war in Yemen could soar to nearly quarter of a million by the end of 2019. In this episode we focus on what is now needed to support the fragile peace process and what is CMI's role in different peacemaking efforts. Guest is CMI's Yemen Project Manager Sylvia Rognvik. Podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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Peacetech: Is it just another buzzword? 23:32

vor 6 years23:32

23:32

With big data, artificial intelligence and virtual reality, a fast technological revolution is taking place right before our eyes. On the battlefield these new technologies paint a scary vision of the future. The world might enter the age of killer robots that would make war even more horrible. But what if these same technologies that make war would be used to make peace? Today's guest is Antero Karvonen who’s CMI’s expert on the emerging field of peacetech. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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The Finnish way in peacemaking 25:01

vor 6 years25:01

25:01

The rise of great power politics and the increasingly complex nature of conflicts pose many challenges to peacemakers. Some of the old ways of working are no longer working. In this episode, we ask whether the Finnish way in peacemaking could respond to some of the challenges. The guest is CMI's Executive Director Tuija Talvitie. The podcast is hosted by CMI's Communications Manager Antti Ämmälä.…

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Understanding the Elegant Math Behind Modern Machine Learning 1:14:43

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What is Martti Ahtisaari's vision for peacemaking?