Philosopher Marina Garcés and researcher Andreas Kaltenbrunner to inaugurate UOC's 29th academic year with a lecture on AI

The UOC will start its 29th academic year with an inaugural lecture focusing one of the most powerful tools of our time: Artificial Intelligence (AI). In this year's lecture, entitled "Reinterpreting intelligence to reinterpret what we are. The sudden rise of generative AI gives us the chance to reinterpret and reassess what defines us a species," Marina Garcés, a philosopher and member of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, and Andreas Kaltenbrunner, lead researcher of the AI and Data for Society (AID4So) group, will be discussing the effects of AI. The event will be held in the auditorium of the U Building on the UOC campus at 11 a.m. (CEST) on 18 October and streamed live.

How will our lives change with the advent of AI? What influence will AI have on teaching? Is it possible to have an algorithm created by AI that isn't biased? Could AI change what defines us as a species? These are some of the questions for the UOC's inaugural lecture. The conversation will be moderated by Sílvia Sivera, director of the eLearning Innovation Center, who will act as master of ceremonies.

Andreas Kaltenbrunner conducts research into the human side of the application of AI, and examines technology while placing the human being at the centre. After working at various European technology and research centres, he joined the UOC this year to lead the new AI and Data for Society (AID4So) group at the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3). The group will focus on the development of new methods in AI, machine learning and big data analytics, and on the search for opportunities to undertake research in areas such as the social sciences and digital humanities.

Marina Garcés is a philosopher and the director of the UOC's Master's Degree in Philosophy for Contemporary Challenges. She is also the coordinator of the MUSSOL research group, which seeks to make philosophy a tool for meeting, dialogue and commitment to the common problems of our time. Garcés is also a member of faculty of the MACBA Independent Studies Programme, director of the Open Classroom of Barcelona's Institute of Humanities (CCCB), winner of the 2018 Ciutat de Barcelona Essay Prize, and author of numerous works (both books and articles) on contemporary philosophy.

Where and when?

The event to mark the start of the 2023/2024 academic year will take place at 11 a.m. (CEST) on Wednesday 18 October 2023 in the new auditorium of U Building on the UOC Campus. The Minister of Research and Universities of the Government of Catalonia, Joaquim Nadal, will also speak at the event. And Pere Vallès, chair of the Board of Trustees, and Àngels Fitó, rector of the UOC, will be there to officially declare the start of the university's 29th academic year.

The event will take place on-site, and those wishing to attend must register in advance. It will also be streamed online via YouTube and LinkedIn.

Recent inaugural lectures

The inaugural lecture is the institutional ceremony that officially opens the academic year at the UOC. A number of renowned figures have given these lectures in recent years, and they have addressed some of the UOC's areas of expertise and knowledge. For the 2022/2023 academic year, the inaugural lecture was given by the president of the European University Association, Michael Murphy, who talked about "Universities without Walls. Adapting to Change in Europe". Before that, for the 2021/2022 academic year, Francesca Bria, expert and advisor on digital policies and information technologies, talked about "A digital green deal for Europe's technological sovereignty". And to open the 2020/2021 academic year, Sanjay Sarma, professor of Mechanical Engineering and the vice president for Open Learning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, gave a lecture entitled "What Is the Future of Education?"

The UOC begins its 29th academic year with more than 66,600 enrolments

This year's inaugural lecture also marks the beginning of classes in a year in which the UOC has broken records: more than 66,600 enrolments for official programmes so far, with enrolment still open for many university master's degrees. For its bachelor's degrees programmes, which began on 27 September, the UOC has 47,993 enrolments, with Psychology the most popular, followed by Computer Engineering, Law and Business Administration and Management, with over 1,000 enrolments each, and Social Education, with almost 800. On the UOC's university master's degrees, enrolment figures (which are not final because enrolment for some programmes is still open) rose to 18,518. The Master's Degree in Legal Practice and Representation is the most popular, followed by the Master's Degree in Teacher Training and the Master's Degree in Education and ICT (E-learning). The beginning of teaching on university master's degree courses is staggered: some courses began on 27 September, while others will start on 18 October.