Today, each of us is a creator and a consumer on social media. Our online conversations prioritize personal belief and opinion over fact; emotional appeals are used to sway public opinion, all of which shapes the norms and morals that govern the world we inhabit. In the absence of an arbiter of truth online, how can we create social media experiences that prioritise credible information, free from malign and misinformation? At Pint AI, Chirag Chinnappa and his team are using social intelligence to detect disingenuous online conversations early on – those that may harm governments, brands, and movements – to create safer, more equal online spaces for users.

In life, and more so as children, we are taught to pursue certain virtues: kindness and respect, high expectations of oneself, and so on. As inhabitants and decision-makers of our online spaces, it’s time we added the pursuit towards quality online information and well-informed beliefs to that list of virtues. Artificial intelligence can help us do so, but only if we’re asking the right questions.
Chirag is the co-founder of Pint-AI, a social intelligence platform that preempts risks and opportunities for brands. Pint’s technology detects online narratives early – while assessing each one’s authenticity, sentiment, and networks – to predict its impact on the reputation of individuals and organisations. Since 2017, he has worked with over 700 writers as Chief Editor and co-founder at The Bastion, a digital journalism platform that covers India’s development journey, in depth. Chirag also spent a year as a legislative assistant to Mr Bhupender Yadav – the current Union Minister for Labour & Employment and Environment, Forest & Climate Change – as a LAMP Fellow. He received his bachelors and post-graduate diploma in Political Science from Ashoka University. As a researcher, editor, and entrepreneur, Chirag’s work is inspired by the pursuit towards harbouring free discussion and well-informed beliefs – by improving the quality and credibility of information that people are privy to. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx