Why AI Literacy Alone Isn’t Enough and What We Can Do About It with Katy Knight of Siegel Family Endowment & Dr. Allison Scott of Kapor Foundation

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Katy Knight is President and Executive Director of Siegel Family Endowment, where she leads bold, systems-focused philanthropy at the intersection of technology and society. Since 2017, she has advanced equity, flexible funding, and inquiry-driven grantmaking grounded in the scientific method, and centered on reframing big questions and learning alongside grant investments.

Dr. Allison Scott is CEO of the Kapor Foundation, leading work at the intersection of racial justice and technology. She drives research, programs, and advocacy to expand equity in tech and entrepreneurship. A national PI on major CS equity grants, she also co-leads CSforCA, advancing access to K-12 computer science across California.

💡 5 Things You’ll Learn in This Episode:

Why AI literacy isn’t enough for future-ready students
Coding vs. computer science vs. computational thinking
How philanthropy can modernize education
The surprising role of “unsexy tech” in schools
Real paths to public-private collaboration in edtech

✨ Episode Highlights:
[00:04:40] Allison Scott on AI and tech equity
[00:06:39] Katy Knight on Siegel’s AI readiness
[00:11:06] Barriers to equitable CS education
[00:14:15] Rethinking school systems for CS reform
[00:25:46] Tech overload fears for kids
[00:30:52] Philanthropy’s bet on public interest tech
[00:51:49] Why backend tech matters in schools
[00:52:46] The risk of ed workforce disruption

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Chapters

1. Why AI Literacy Alone Isn’t Enough and What We Can Do About It with Katy Knight of Siegel Family Endowment & Dr. Allison Scott of Kapor Foundation (00:00:00)

2. Allison Scott on preventing AI from repeating tech’s inequities (00:04:37)

3. Katy Knight explains why Siegel has been ready for AI for years (00:06:36)

4. The structural barriers still blocking equitable CS education (00:11:03)

5. Why real CS reform requires rethinking the whole school system (00:14:12)

6. Should we replace math with CS? A provocative idea (00:19:59)

7. Addressing fears of too much tech in kids’ lives (00:25:43)

8. Why philanthropy is investing in public interest technology (00:30:49)

9. How schools and companies can better share learning tools (00:37:54)

10. Building a shared vision for AI education across sectors (00:42:52)

11. Why “unsexy” backend tech matters for teachers (00:51:46)

12. The looming risk of workforce displacement in education (00:52:43)

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