A pilot project that aims to advance research—both theoretical and practical—connecting artificial intelligence and consciousness.
The initiative is just getting started. New research, events, and collaborations will appear here as the initiative takes shape.
As artificial intelligence grows more powerful and flexible, questions about artificial minds that were once speculative are becoming pressing across academic, tech, and policy spheres. The Artificial Consciousness Initiative gathers together researchers—led by a core team of philosophers at the University of Toronto—to advance foundational research on these questions. Alongside basic research, the initiative aims to develop partnerships with other institutions, contribute to an international research network on artificial minds, support field-building efforts, and inform academic, public, and policy discussions.
The initiative doesn’t assume that current artificial systems are conscious, or that future ones will be. But it starts from the view that these questions are worth taking seriously.
Some of the questions guiding the initiative:
The core team has expertise spanning the philosophy of mind, ethics, decision theory, cognitive science, and artificial intelligence.
Director
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
Mind · Metaphysics · Ethics · Representation
Andrew works on the structure of consciousness, mathematical phenomenology, perception, introspection, representation, and the ethics of consciousness.
Core Member
Associate Professor, Institute for the History & Philosophy of Science & Technology
Cognitive Science · Mind · Philosophy of Science
Karina works on the capacities and limits of machine minds, AI safety, and philosophy of science.
Core Member
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
Ethics · Decision Theory
Christian works on moral decision-making under uncertainty, population ethics, and AI alignment.
Core Member
Chancellor Jackman Professor in Philosophy
Ethics · Aesthetics · Mind
Gwen works in value theory, including on issues about well-being and ill-being, the badness of pain, the ethics of consciousness, and what makes persons and artifacts irreplaceable.