UvA philosophers launch platform on the ethics of technology
Official launch Platform for the Ethics and Politics of Technology on 13 November. Smart cities, medical technologies, artificial intelligence, the energy transition: new technologies are all around us and affect every part of society and our daily lives, raising new ethical and political questions. The new Platform for the Ethics and Politics of Technology (PEPT), which will be launched on 13 November, will be stimulating the debate surrounding these questions by bringing together experts from different departments of the UvA. The platform will connect existing research projects but will also initiate new collaborations on the ethics and politics of technology. PEPT is an initiative organised by the Faculty of Humanities and is housed at the Philosophy department. 'The Philosophy department has a lot to offer when it comes to the discussion about technology, because we are trained to reflect on ethical and political-philosophical matters', says professor Huub Dijstelbloem, co-initiator of the platform along with Beatle Roessler. Broader than just artificial intelligence. The UvA already devotes a lot of attention to artificial intelligence, but the new platform will also look at technology in a broader sense. Dijstelbloem: 'Besides artificial intelligence, technology takes on lots of other different shapes, which raise important questions. Think, for instance, of what the concept of privacy actually entails and how we can safeguard it in a world riddled with all sorts of smart devices. Or of medical-technological questions: is a doctor allowed to interfere medically if someone is not ill?
