[Air-L] CFP: AlgoSoc International Conference 2025 - The Future of Public Values in the Algorithmic Society

[Helmond, A. (Anne)]

* Call for Abstracts *
AlgoSoc International Conference 2025
The Future of Public Values in the Algorithmic Society
April 10-11, 2025 | Felix Meritis in Amsterdam, the Netherlands
We invite abstracts for ‘The Future of Public Values in the Algorithmic Society’, a two-day international conference hosted by AlgoSoc, taking place at Felix Meritis in Amsterdam on April 10 and 11, 2025. Public Values in the Algorithmic Society (AlgoSoc) is an interdisciplinary research program which responds to the urgent need for an informed societal perspective on automation and automated decision-making. Grounded in a deep understanding of the systemic changes that automated decision-making systems imply for core public institutions, for society, and for how public values are conceptualised and ultimately realised, AlgoSoc develops solutions for the design of governance frameworks needed to complement technology-driven initiatives in the algorithmic society. AlgoSoc is a Dutch government funded collaboration between the universities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Delft, Utrecht and Tilburg, integrating expertise from law, computer science, the humanities and social sciences.

* Conference Theme *
Realising public values in the algorithmic society is only in parts a technological challenge and there are limits to what can be achieved with value-sensitive technology design. More than anything, realising public values in AI, algorithms and computational infrastructures is a profound societal challenge that involves a whole ecosystem of actors and depends on the complex social, cultural, economic, technical, organisational, and institutional contexts, in which these systems are grounded, used, and contested. Similarly, public values are not static but develop dynamically in response to new technologies, social transformations, (political) power struggles, and the myriad interactions of people with technologies.

Current regulatory approaches around the world aim to make digital technology more responsible, more ethical, and more cognisant of the values that characterise the societies in which they are embedded. The EU AI Act is a point in case, seeking to make AI trustworthy and ensuring that: “AI systems respect fundamental rights, safety and ethical principles.” The primary goal of the US Executive Order is that AI systems function as intended, are resilient against misuse or dangerous modifications, are ethically developed and operated in a secure manner, and are compliant with applicable Federal laws and policies. And in China, Generative AI must adhere to “Core Socialist Values”. Common to all these approaches is that they are technology-centric, concentrating on the process of developing and deploying AI products and services in society.

The goal of this conference is to re-center the debate on public values in AI, algorithms and their computational infrastructures, from a primarily technological to a societal challenge.
Deadline call for abstracts: 30 September, 2024

For more information on the call for abstracts and the conference, please see the website: https://algosoc.org/events/algosoc-international-conference-2025-the-future-of-public-values-in-the-algorithmic-society