The Oxford Philosophy, Law, and Politics (PLP) Colloquium is an interdisciplinary series that brings together scholars from philosophy, law, politics, and related fields to discuss works in progress by distinguished researchers.
In the 2026–27 academic year, the Colloquium will take a new direction. Reflecting the growing importance of artificial intelligence across all domains of inquiry, the series will focus on cutting-edge AI research of significance for philosophy, law, and politics. Our speakers will be drawn from Oxford and London institutions and will include leading researchers from psychology and neuroscience, philosophy, computer science, and engineering.
The series is cheekily entitled What Philosophers, Lawyers, and Political Theorists Should Know About AI Research. Its aim is to bring scholars working on the technical frontiers of AI into conversation with members of the PLP community. We invite you to come and learn about the AI research being conducted by our Oxford and London colleagues that bears directly on questions of philosophical, legal, and political importance.
Each session will consist of a 45–50 minute non-technical presentation by the invited speaker, followed by discussion and Q&A. No prior technical background or pre-reading is required.
The 2026–27 Colloquium is co-sponsored by the Oxford Institute for Ethics in AI. The series is co-convened by Ruth Chang, David Enoch, and Edward Harcourt. We thank the Hewlett Foundation for funding that makes the Colloquium possible.
Iason Gabriel is a philosopher and Senior Staff Research Scientist based at Google DeepMind, where he leads the Humanity, Ethics and Alignment Research Team (HEART). Iason's work focuses on the ethics of artificial intelligence, including questions about AI value alignment, distributive justice, language ethics and human rights. More generally he is interested in the relationship between AI and human values – and in ensuring that technology works well for the benefit of all. Before joining Google DeepMind, Iason taught moral and political philosophy at Oxford University and worked for the United Nations. In 2024 Iason was named one of the 100 most influential people working in the field of AI by Time magazine.