AI ethics conference returns to University of Glasgow
Published: 23 August 2025
Commentary, Event recording
Artificial intelligence experts will discuss the impact of the rapidly advancing technology on learning, teaching and research at an event at the University of Glasgow this autumn.
Artificial intelligence experts will discuss the impact of the rapidly advancing technology on learning, teaching and research at an event at the University of Glasgow this autumn.
The University will host the second Lovelace-Hodgkin Symposium on Thursday 2nd and Friday 3rd October, showcasing speakers from industry, academia and government.
The event builds on the success of last year’s inaugural symposium, which focused on building an ethical framework for inclusive AI.
This year’s two-day event at the Advanced Research Centre (ARC), which is free to attend, will explore what trustworthy AI really means, and how AI can be developed and used responsibly in early education, universities and lifelong learning.
The event will include three keynote addresses from representatives of the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, and the Research-on-Research Institute’s (RoRI) GRAIL Project.
Global AI equity thought-leader, Aanya Niaz, will discuss what equitable and responsible AI in education looks like from both global and institutional perspectives, covering pre-university, university and post-university education contexts.
Professor Maggi Savin-Baden of the University of Oxford's keynote will examine questions of truth and institutional responsibility in the age of AI, including how academic institutions define truth in an AI-driven world.
Dr Denis Newman-Griffis, University of Sheffield & RoRI GRAIL Project Lead, will explore responsible use of AI in research funding and evaluation.
Professor Ana Basiri, the director of the University of Glasgow’s Centre for Data Science & AI, will deliver the symposium’s opening and closing remarks. She said: “We were delighted by the positive response to last year’s symposium and we’ve taken the lessons learned from that experience to deliver an even more impactful lineup of speakers for this year. We’re looking forward to welcoming attendees from across the UK to our campus for engaging sessions exploring the impact of artificial intelligence on how we will learn, teach, and conduct research in the years ahead.
Dr Jake Lever from the University of Glasgow's School of Computing Science will present a talk called ‘Can ChatGPT do my degree for me?’, confronting the challenges that large language models can pose for educators.
Dr Chris Burr from the Alan Turing Institute will examine what it means to build ethical, trustworthy AI from a technical perspective, while his colleague Dr Mhairi Aitken will present on children-centred AI and the importance of centring their feedback and experiences in the future of education.
Professor Martin Hendry, Vice-Principal Academic Practice at the University of Glasgow and chair of the university's AI working group, will draw on his work with the Royal Society of Edinburgh on ethical and digital literacies for children to examine how students navigate AI ethics across Scotland's education system from primary school through university.
Author and podcaster Dr Andy McMahon, who is principal engineer at Barclays, will help attendees understand the skills that are important in the age of AI and what employers really value in human workers.
Dr Dan Burkwood, Director of Research Operations & Communications at Cancer Research UK, will discuss CRUK’s development of responsible AI policies and funding guidelines, and the ongoing development of research funding bodies’ approach to the use of AI.
Clare Adamson MSP, Chair of the Scottish Parliament’s Cross-Party STEM Committee, will deliver the closing remarks on the final day of the symposium.
A workshop and Panel Discussion on the second day of the symposium, led by senior figures at the University of Glasgow, will explore how the themes of the symposium could help inform future institutional policy developments. Dr Dan Burkwood, Director of Research Operations & Communications at Cancer Research UK will join University of Glasgow Vice-Principals during the panel session.
The symposium will also feature presentations from University of Glasgow students who co-created an online FutureLearn course titled ‘AI, Ethics, Inclusion and Society’ based on some of the discussions at last year’s symposium. The course, which launched in May, has already attracted nearly 600 participants from around the world.
Student presenters will share research on biodiversity and environmental impacts of AI, as well as findings from surveys examining student concerns about AI and education ethics.
Dr Ciorsdaidh Watts, of the University’s School of Chemistry, and Dr Lydia Bach, of the University’s People & Organisational Development team, led the development of the symposium’s programme.
Dr Watts said: "The field of AI is expanding and evolving so rapidly that it's crucial we maintain focus on how it can be developed and implemented responsibly. This symposium provides a vital platform for examining the many ways that AI impacts education from childhood through to lifelong learning and employment, both today and in the years to come."
The event is named in honour of Ada Lovelace, the pioneering 19th-century mathematician who recognised the early potential of computing, and Dorothy Hodgkin, a Nobel Prize-winning chemist who made key contributions to the development of X-ray crystallography and who advocated for social justice throughout her life.
The full programme for the event is available on the Centre for Data Science & AI’s website.
Free tickets to this year’s Lovelace-Hodkin Symposium are available here.
This event summary was cross posted on the University news website.
First published: 23 August 2025