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24th March 2021

Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information Luciano Floridi discusses developments in Artificial Intelligence

With in-person events not possible at the moment, Exeter College has been running more online events and webinars than ever before. The most recent was an event for alumni and friends of the College in Asia, who might not have been able to attend previous talks because of the time difference.

The key speaker was Luciano Floridi, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information at the Oxford Internet Institute, Director of the Digital Ethics Lab, and a Fellow by Special Election. Professor Floridi delved into the world of Artificial Intelligence, a world that some may feel is a way off becoming all-consuming. However we learnt, perhaps rather terrifyingly, that our world can no longer be divided into offline/online; ‘offline’ life eroding almost seamlessly and unnoticeably.

AI is developing, and will continue to develop, at pace – and Professor Floridi discussed the positives and negatives that poses, in an era that will never again be seen or experienced. For a while now we have thought of ourselves as living in a Digital Age – but in fact we are on the precipice, juggling generations between ‘analogue’ and ‘digital’.

Professor Floridi’s talk was preceded by a brief presentation from the Rector, revealing the College’s plans to renovate and restore Exeter Library to make it fully accessible and a more suitable space for 21st century study.

You can watch Professor Floridi’s talk, as well as the Rector’s discussion of the Library renovation, below or on YouTube by clicking here.

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