Anne Foerst: Embodied AI & the Challenge of Personhood

Tripp Fuller

In this edition of the Process This: Artificial Intelligence series we are joined by AI pioneer, computer scientist, and theologian Dr. Anne Foerst. Anne offers a deep dive into the fascinating

intersection of AI and theology, urging us to consider the profound ethical, social, and theological questions as we march into an increasingly AI-driven future. As a member of MIT’s earliest explorations of embodied AI, she brings a unique perspective to a conversation increasingly shaped by the emergence of large language models of AI.

Dr. Anne Foerst is a Professor and chair of Computer Science at St. Bonaventure University. She teaches Computers and Society, Cybersecurity Ethics, and other interdisciplinary courses. She is also the director of the individualized major program at SBU. Her research focuses on the theological implications of Artificial Intelligence and the personhood of robots. Previously, she has worked as a research scientist at the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and was also affiliated with the Center for the Studies of Values in Public Life of Harvard Divinity School. While in the artificial intelligence lab at MIT, she served as theological advisor for the Cog and Kismet projects, two attempts to develop embodied, autonomous social robots that resemble human infants in their ability to learn and develop more mature intelligence levels.

Check out her book God in the Machine: What Robots teach us about God and Humanity.

In the conversation, we discuss…

• Defining Artificial Intelligence
• Anthropomorphism and AI
• Personhood and Ethical Challenges
• AI in Religious Contexts
• Social Robots and Human Development
• Ethical Implications of AI
• AI and Human Evolution
• The Role of Community and Ethics

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