Florian Heinemann

In an interview with Die Zeit, Meredith Whittaker once summarized the current AI boom as follows: "The major AI players develop technologies with surveillance as their business model." While the services may be free initially, she notes that "massive amounts of data are generated and stored in the background—and access to that data is sold to the advertising industry." According to Whittaker, this is simply the economic engine driving the tech industry, with AI being the latest technical approach. Whittaker’s assessment is rooted in first-hand knowledge. She founded Google’s Open Research Group and led it for over a decade before moving to NYU as a research professor. There, she co-founded the AI Now Institute, served as its director, and continues to act as its chief advisor today. Her perspective is the result of diverse experiences shaped by her time in industry, academia, and government circles. Starting in 2021, she served as a senior advisor on AI to Lina Khan, the then-chair of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. Additionally, since mid-2025, she has been a member of the Board of Directors at Burda. Since September 2022, Meredith Whittaker has been the President of the Signal Foundation, having previously served as a member of its Board of Directors since 2019. The Signal Foundation develops the Signal messenger—which, according to its own description, is the "world’s largest, truly private communication app with an unwavering focus on privacy-preserving technologies that ensure the right to private communication." Signal thus serves as a counterweight to the business model described above, which is based on the trade of data. It aims to prove that technology can operate differently. This commitment to data protection, transparency, and a clear stance on privacy has ensured that the app is an integral part of critical infrastructure worldwide—whether for governments, militaries, human rights activists, or journalists. Signal is also the only communication app recommended by the European Commission for use by its members. Furthermore, the Swedish military recently officially recommended its use. Worldwide, and particularly in Europe, the demand for data protection—and thus indirectly the use of Signal—is growing. Meredith Whittaker will provide insights into this development and her perspective on the tech and AI world on the Conference Stage at OMR26.