Kate Crawford was born in 1974 in Australia1. She began her academic journey in her home country, pursuing her higher education at the University of Sydney. Crawford's early academic interests were diverse, reflecting her multidisciplinary approach that would later define her career.

At the University of Sydney, Crawford completed her PhD in Media Studies21. This foundation in media and cultural studies would prove instrumental in shaping her unique perspective on technology and society. Her doctoral research likely explored the intersections of media, technology, and social impact, setting the stage for her future work in AI ethics and the societal implications of emerging technologies3.

Kate Crawford's early career and academic contributions laid a strong foundation for her influential work in AI ethics and social implications of technology. After completing her PhD in Media Studies at the University of Sydney, Crawford began her career as a lecturer at the same institution1. Her early research focused on the social and cultural impacts of the internet, big data, and social media, providing a critical lens through which to examine emerging technologies.

Crawford's transition into AI ethics was marked by significant appointments that allowed her to blend her background in cultural and media studies with critical technology studies. She served as a Principal Researcher at Microsoft Research and a Visiting Professor at the MIT Media Lab in the Centre for Civic Media2. These roles enabled Crawford to delve deeper into the sociotechnical complexities of AI, examining its ethical, political, environmental, and labor contexts. Her interdisciplinary approach, combining media studies with technology research, has been instrumental in shaping the field of AI ethics and fostering a more nuanced understanding of the societal impacts of artificial intelligence34.

Kate Crawford's pioneering work in AI ethics has established her as a leading voice in unraveling the complex ethical implications of artificial intelligence technologies12. As a co-founder of the AI Now Institute at New York University, Crawford has spearheaded research into the social impacts of AI, advocating for responsible development and usage of these powerful technologies3. Her work consistently emphasizes the need for a critical approach to AI, highlighting potential biases, inequalities, and privacy concerns inherent in these systems4.

Crawford's influential book, "Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence," offers a groundbreaking perspective on AI as an extractive industry5. In this work, she challenges the notion of AI as a neutral, abstract technology, instead revealing its deep entanglement with human labor, natural resources, and existing power structures. By exposing the often-overlooked environmental degradation, labor exploitation, and data privacy issues associated with AI development and deployment, Crawford provides a compelling narrative that encourages readers to reconsider the true costs of artificial intelligence in our society25.