Conference presentations in May and June

In May and June 2024, Professor Christoph Lutz participated in three conferences, presenting ongoing research at each. The AI and Emerging Technologies: Beyond the Hype workshop took place in Paris from 16-17 May. The Surveillance Studies Network Conference was hosted in Ljubljana from 28-31 May. Finally, Christoph participated in an invited workshop on Reflecting on over a Decade of Platform-Mediated Gig Work in Zurich on 4 June.

AI and Emerging Technologies

On 16 and 17 May, Christoph presented at the AI and Emerging Technologies: Beyond the Hype workshop in Paris. The workshop was held at ESSEC Business School with a complete program over the two days. Lauren Waardenburg (ESSEC) and Cristina Alaimo (LUISS) served as the organizers and hosts. The two days included a packed program, with four keynote presentations by Jan Recker (University of Hamburg), Elena Esposito (University of Bologna and University of Bielefeld), Harris Kyriakou (ESSEC) and Melissa Valentine (Stanford University) as well as a book presentation by Cristina Alaimo and plenary presentations and parallel sessions with many talented researchers.

At the workshop, Christoph Lutz presented on “Occupational Evaluation through the Eyes of Artificial Intelligence: Contrasting Human and Machine Judgements”, which is research in collaboration with Pawel Gmyrek (International Labour Organization) and Gemma Newlands (Oxford Internet Institute). The presentation was followed by a question and answer session and the study this presentation was based on is available as a pre-print here. 

The Surveillance Studies Network Conference

On 28-31 May, Christoph presented at the 10th Surveillance Studies Network Conference in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The conference was hosted by the Institute of Criminology at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana. Among other things, the conference focused on themes such as surveillance in the majority world, technologies, arts culture, as well as law and justice. Conference participants discussed how marked technological advancements and shifting societal norms affect the intricate interplay between surveillance and our daily lives.

At the conference, Christoph presented in the Smart homes session, with a talk entitled “A Glitch Studies Perspective on Smart Speakers, Privacy and Surveillance” (co-authored with Gemma Newlands from the Oxford Internet Institute).

Reflecting on over a Decade of Platform-Mediated Gig Work

Lastly, on 4 June, Christoph was invited to a workshop on “Reflecting on over a Decade of Platform-Mediated Gig Work” in Zurich. The workshop was divided into three sessions, focusing firstly on the historical development of gig platforms or sectors, then secondly on blind spots and misunderstanding in gig economy scholarships, and finally on challenges that platforms face.

The workshop aimed to review and evaluate the past, present and future of the gig economy.  Christoph gave a presentation in the third session. The workshop was rounded off with an informal dinner.