Oxford Studies in Philosophy of AI and Computing (OSPAIC) has launched as an annual series with an accompanying conference, creating a new home for philosophers working on questions raised by AI and computing. Its inaugural call for submissions is open, alongside a $10,000 prize for an AI and philosophy manuscript competition.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
Seth Lazar of Johns Hopkins is OSPAIC’s executive editor. The associate editors are Jeffrey Howard of UCL and Rachael Sterken of the University of Hong Kong; Ned Howells-Whitaker of Johns Hopkins and Pittsburgh is assistant editor. Lazar says the project aims to bring philosophers into a wider conversation about rapid AI progress, an area he says has often sat at the discipline’s margins.
The conference and annual volume are central to that plan. Lazar is also encouraging submitters to upload drafts to arXiv, using the keyword PFAI. Daily Nous announced the launch on 27 October.
Why it matters
AI is changing questions about knowledge, responsibility and intellectual work, but technical progress can outpace the communities equipped to examine what it means. A recurring conference and publication could give those discussions a place to develop, rather than leaving them scattered across disciplines.
There is a practical invitation here, too: researchers can submit to the inaugural call, and the related competition offers a $10,000 prize. The series’ success will depend on who can take part and whether it attracts work that speaks beyond philosophy’s own seminar rooms.
Our read
A dedicated forum for thinking carefully about AI is a good idea. The slightly less glamorous challenge is making it genuinely open to people who do not already know the right academic corridors, or how to get an arXiv endorsement. A conference can bring people together; a strong route in matters just as much.
What to watch
- The scope and deadlines for the inaugural call for submissions.
- How the conference and annual volume bring philosophical work into wider AI debates.
- Who can enter the manuscript competition and how the $10,000 prize will be awarded.
- Whether the suggested arXiv route is accessible to contributors outside computer science.
Discussion spark: Should philosophy of AI build its own dedicated institutions, or is it better served by working inside existing technology and humanities forums?
Sources and evidence
- Source update (27 October 2026, 16:16 UTC)
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