Philosophical Disquisitions

In this episode, John and Sven answer questions from podcast listeners. Topics covered include: the relationships between animal ethics and AI ethics; religion and philosophy of tech; the analytic-continental divide; the debate about short vs long-term risks; getting engineers to take ethics seriously and much much more. Thanks to everyone that submitted a question. You can download the episode here or listen below. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon and a range of other podcasting services. Subscribe to the newsletter

The podcast explores humanity's future with technology, discussing topics such as virtual realities, cyborgism, merging minds, and the ethical implications of human-technology integration. It also questions the need for deeper integration and reflects on themes of control, responsibility, and moral agency in technology ethics.

The podcast explores the ethical implications of relationships with machines, including friendships, working relationships, and intimate relationships. It discusses parallels from fiction and real-world examples, such as soldiers bonding with robots. The podcast also delves into the dynamics of forming connections with chatbots, military robots, workplace robots, and love dolls. It explores philosophical models of friendship in relation to robots and raises concerns about ulterior motives. The impact of ulterior motives on relationships, diverse emotional dispositions towards robots, and the ethics of scholarship on AI are also discussed.

In this episode Sven and John discuss the moral status of machines, particularly humanoid robots. Could machines ever be more than mere things? Some people see this debate as a distraction from the important ethical questions pertaining to technology; others take it more seriously. Sven and John share their thoughts on this topic and give some guidance as to how to think about the nature of moral status and its significance. You can download the episode here or listen below. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon and a range of other podcasting services. Recommended Reading David Gunkel, Person, Thing, Robot Butlin, Long et al 'Consciousness in AI: Insights from the Science of Consciousness' Summary of the above paper from Daily Nous. Subscribe to the newsletter

In this episode, Sven and John discuss the controversy arising from the idea moral agency in machines. What is an agent? What is a moral agent? Is it possible to create a machine with a sense of moral agency? Is this desirable or to be avoided at all costs? These are just some of the questions up for debate. You can download the episode here or listen below. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon and a range of other podcasting services. Recommended Reading Amanda Sharkey, 'Can we program or train robots to be good?' Paul Formosa and Malcolm Ryan, 'Making Moral Machines: Why we need artificial moral agents?' Michael Anderson and Susan Leigh Anderson, 'Machine ethics: creating an ethical intelligent agent' Carissa Véliz, 'Moral zombies: why algorithms are not moral agents' Subscribe to the newsletter

In this episode Sven and John discuss the thorny topic of responsibility gaps and technology. Over the past two decades, a small cottage industry of legal and philosophical research has arisen in relation to the idea that increasingly autonomous machines create gaps in responsibility. But what does this mean? Is it a serious ethical/legal problem? How can it be resolved? All this and more is explored in this episode. You can download the episode here or listen below. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon and a range of other podcasting services. Recommended Reading Robert Sparrow 'Killer Robots' Alexander Hevelke and Julian Nida-Rümelin, "Responsibility for Crashes of Autonomous Vehicles" Andreas Matthias 'The Responsibility Gap: Ascribing Responsibility for the Actions Learning Automata' Jack Stilgoe 'Who's Driving Innovation', Chapter 1 Discount To get a discounted copy of Sven’s book, click here and use the code ‘TEC20’ to get 20% off the regular price. Subscribe to the newsletter

The podcast explores the role of technology in behavior change and control. It discusses the historical connection between philosophy and self-help, the challenge of controlling our lives with technology, and the ethical implications of behavior change technologies. The speakers also address the dimensions of control and the feminist critique of autonomy.

In this episode, John and Sven discuss risk and technology ethics. They focus, in particular, on the perennially popular and widely discussed problems of value alignment (how to get technology to align with our values) and control (making sure technology doesn't do something terrible). They start the conversation with the famous case study of Stanislov Petrov and the prevention of nuclear war. You can listen below or download the episode here. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon and a range of other podcasting services. Recommendations for further reading Atoosa Kasirzadeh and Iason Gabriel, 'In Conversation with AI: Aligning Language Models with Human Values' Nick Bostrom, relevant chapters from Superintelligence Stuart Russell, Human Compatible Langdon Winner, 'Do Artifacts Have Politics?' Iason Gabriel, 'Artificial Intelligence, Values and Alignment' Brian Christian, The Alignment Problem Discount You can purchase a 20% discounted copy of This is Technology Ethics by using the code TEC20 at the publisher's website. Subscribe to the newsletter

In this podcast, John and Sven discuss the methods of technology ethics, including the challenges faced in articulating ethical methods. They explore the ethical questions and challenges surrounding self-driving cars, the concept of 'ethics by committee' in technology ethics, the process of developing reforms for the law concerning the ethics of autonomous vehicles, and the challenges of applying ethical principles to the design of autonomous vehicles. They also discuss the absence of traditional normative ethics in technology ethics and alternative approaches in shaping society through technology ethics.

This podcast series explores key themes in the ethics of technology, covering topics such as the nature of technology and ethics, problems of control and responsibility, and the desirability of merging with machines. It provides an accessible introduction to technology ethics and could serve as a companion to a course in the field. The hosts discuss their backgrounds and interests, explore different perspectives on technology, and delve into the relationship between ethics and technology. They also examine the role of technology in mediating our perception of the world and consider the clash between modern technology and human excellence. Additionally, they emphasize the importance of considering diverse perspectives in technology ethics discussions.