Grant Shanklin
Student · Computer Science & Philosophy at Yale University
I work at the intersection of computer science and philosophy, with interests in theoretical machine learning, causation, and philosophy of science. My research examines the epistemic and normative foundations of machine learning systems, especially as they are used in algorithmic decision-making. I am interested in what these systems can know, represent, and explain, and in how those capacities shape the case for their proper use. More broadly, I hope my work contributes to a growing body of thought about how computing can responsibly shape modern society.
At Yale University, I study computer science and philosophy. My primary research is conducted through the Yale Digital Ethics Center under Luciano Floridi. I am also being advised by Lily Hu for my philosophy senior thesis on causal theorizing in machine learning. Over the summer, I'm abroad as a research intern at the Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy under Asia Biega in the Responsible Computing Group. I cannot express my gratitude enough for these superb mentors.
Recent (and Upcoming) Work
**Coming Soon** Direction-Aware Per-Instance Distinguishability for DP-SGD
**Coming Soon** How Legal AI Architectures Take Sides on Jurisprudential Debates
The Case for Contextual Copyleft: Licensing Open-Source Training Data and Generative AI
Introduces the Contextual Copyleft AI (CCAI) licence, a novel mechanism extending copyleft obligations from open-source training data to the generative models trained on it, enhancing developer control and mitigating open-washing.
Open-Source AI Made in the EU: Why it is a Good Idea
Argues that the EU’s regulatory framework and ethical commitments uniquely position it to produce trustworthy open-source foundation models, offering a competitive alternative to proprietary and foreign AI systems.
Writing
Occasional essays and notes, written for a general audience.
CV
A full CV is available here. Below is a brief summary.
Education
Research Experience
Contact
I can be contacted at grant.shanklin [at] yale.edu