Public Lecture Series "Taming the Machines"Public Lecture: Artificial Intelligence and Progress? A Pragmatist, Justice-Oriented Critique

29 April 2026

AI in its many forms is often presented as a driver of “progress”: improving lives, accelerating solutions, and expanding human possibilities. Prof. Dr. Jan-Heilinger’s (Universität Witten/Herdecke, DE) talk on 29 April 2026 offers a critical framework for assessing such claims by arguing, from a pragmatist and justice-oriented perspective, that real progress means removing obstacles to human flourishing – especially where deprivation, exclusion, and domination persist. The critical conclusion is not anti-technology, but firmly pro-justice.

About the lecture

When: 29.04.2026, 18:15 - 19:45 CEST/Berlin time

Where:

• Join us on-site at: Flü­gelbau Ost, 2. OG, Raum O 221, Ed­mund-Siemers-Allee 1, 20146 Ham­burg
• Join us virtually via Zoom Webinar: After registering on our research group’s website,  you will  receive the access details by e-mail. These access data are valid for all lectures in the series.

Registration and complete program of „Taming the Machines“ lecture series:
https://www.inf.uni-hamburg.de/en/inst/ab/eit/taming-the-machines/summer26.html