Technology for Good
Using Artificial Intelligence for the Common Good
When I began teaching in Northern California, I met a remarkable young woman named Emily Kennedy. Today, she is the President and Founder of Marinus Analytics. I recently invited Emily to join me on the Table Podcast for National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention month. We talked about how she and her team uses artificial intelligence to help law enforcement rescue people from sex trafficking. See how our Christian convictions on the value of human life fuels Emily’s fight against human trafficking and how her company uses technology for social good.
Access the full transcript here.
Emily Kennedy - January 8, 2019
Fighting Human Trafficking in the Digital Age
In this episode, Mikel Del Rosario and Emily Kennedy discuss fighting human trafficking in the digital age, focusing on how artificial intelligence helps law enforcement rescue victims.
From Series: "The Table Podcast"
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Personal Reflections
As a Christian entrepreneur who recognizes the image of God in all people, Emily repeatedly mentioned how every life is of infinite value. Her work manifests a character quality of God by bringing more justice into the world and helping to set people free. This is close to the heartbeat of God. When Jesus read publicly from Isaiah 61, he quoted a section where God’s special servant says, “I have come to declare freedom to the prisoners…and to set the captives free.” Revelation 18 also has a judgment against those who sell the bodies of other people.
Beyond this, her commitment to honesty and integrity in reporting human trafficking statistics was striking. I never thought about how outdated statistics can affect police work, but it makes sense that good research and accurate data can help law enforcement better allocate their resources. Emily is just one example of a Christian ambassador using her giftedeness to extend common grace for the common good in the 21st century.
Cultural engagement isn’t just about responding to skeptical challenges to the Christian faith. The Apostle Peter was clear about the importance of defending the faith (1 Peter 3:15), but he also said that we should “live such excellent lives among the non-Christians, so that …they may see your good deeds and glorify God” (1 Peter 2:12). As William Lane Craig wrote, “More often than not, it is what you are rather than what you say that will bring an unbeliever to Christ. This, then, is the ultimate apologetic. For the ultimate apologetic is: your life.”
