AI IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK! Everyday Life and the Digital Revolution - Prof. Anthony Elliott, Monday 26 November 1pm, Icon Theatre, Room H1.13, Science Hub

In this provocative lecture, Cambridge-trained sociologist Anthony Elliott argues that much of what passes for conventional wisdom about the AI Revolution is either ill-considered or plain wrong.  The reason?  AI is not so much about the future, but is rather a revolution already well underway – albeit one which is unfolding in complex and uneven ways across the globe.

From industrial robots to chatbots, and from driverless cars to military drones – AI, Elliott argues, is transforming all aspects of our lives, from the most intimate aspects of personal relationships to the changing nature of work, employment and unemployment.

Elliott explores how intelligent machines, advanced robotics, accelerating automation, big data and the Internet of Everything are impacting everyday life and modern societies.  The rise of smart machines transforms the global economy, but equally there are now massive changes to society and everyday life.  In order to grasp the full impact of these transformations, Elliott focuses not only on automated technology and jobs and employment, but also AI and new forms of social interaction and the transformation of private life.

ANTHONY ELLIOTT is Dean of External Engagement at the University of South Australia, where he is Research Professor of Sociology and Executive Director of the Hawke EU Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence and Network on AI and Digital Transformation.  He is Super-Global Professor of Sociology (Visiting) at Keio University, Japan and Visiting Professor of Sociology at UCD, Ireland.  He is a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia.  Recently he was appointed to the Expert Working Group of the Academy of the Council of Learned Academies in Australia to investigate: “Deployment of artificial intelligence and what it presents for Australia”. The project has been commissioned by the Chief Scientist of Australia, Dr Alan Finkel, at the request of the Prime Minister’s Commonwealth Science Council, and with support from the Australian Research Council (ARC), the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, and the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science.  He is the author of some 40 books in social theory and modern sociology, including most recently Reinvention, Identity Troubles and The Culture of AI, all published by Routledge.