Taming the Machines – The Philosophy, Ethics and Politics of AI
The Ethics in Information Technology Public Lecture Series
How are philosophers helping us understand and shape the ongoing transformations brought about by AI? The “Taming the Machines” lecture series brings together renowned thinkers to understand and evaluate how technological innovations are transforming European society.
Today, AI systems mediate everything from financial systems to creative expression. Applying for a loan? You are likely to be assessed through algorithmic processes. Want to bring an image in your mind come to life? People more and more turn to generative AI tools to craft a real-looking picture. Even in science, people use generative text tools to draft or edit texts – the consequences are still up in the air.
In the upcoming winter semester, we will hear from scholars who have dedicated their careers to interpreting these disruptions. An important theme is the less visible but profound ways technology mediates daily life—from finance to healthcare—and what this means for our lived experience. And as many interact with chatbots on a daily basis (also within science), we reflect on the ethical use and output of chatbots as well as the question whether such technologies can make moral decisions themselves. Moreover, as we are through major geopolitical shifts, we look at the position and role of Europe and how it ought to retain agency.
Join us as we collectively reflect on, evaluate, and imagine new ways to transform our technological future. To get the latest updates and details how to attend the lectures, please visit http://uhh.de/inf-eit
Wednesday 18:15 – 19:45 (CET), Main Building, Edmund-Siemers-Allee 1, East Wing, Room 221
Die Vorträge im Einzelnen
29.04.2026
Artificial Intelligence and Progress? A Pragmatist, Justice-Oriented Critique
Prof. Dr. Jan-Christoph Heilinger, Universität Witten/Herdecke
06.05.2026
Talking to Myself With AI: From Self-Knowledge to Solitude
Dr. Lucy Osler, University of Exeter, UK
27.05.2026
Cybernetic Authoritarianism: On Silicon Valley’s Technofascism
Prof. Dr. Anna-Verena Nosthoff, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg
03.06.2026
Unveven Datafication: Political Economy of Digital Colonial Capitalism
Azadeh Akbari, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt, DE
01.07.2026
Machinic Normativity
Prof. Dr. Henning Schmidgen, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar
08.07.2026
TBD
Prof. Dr. Tilo Wesche, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg
Datenbank einzelne, öffentliche Vorträge

Foto: UHH
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