Postdoctoral fellow in Philosophy of AI & Socially-Aware Artificial Intelligence

Umeå University, Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Umeå University is one of Sweden’s largest higher education institutions with over 37,000 students and about 4,700 employees. The University offers a diversity of high-quality education and world-leading research in several fields. Notably, the groundbreaking discovery of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing tool, which was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, was made here. At Umeå University, everything is close. Our cohesive campuses make it easy to meet, work together and exchange knowledge, which promotes a dynamic and open culture.

The ongoing societal transformation and large green investments in northern Sweden create enormous opportunities and complex challenges. For Umeå University, conducting research about – and in the middle of – a society in transition is key. We also take pride in delivering education to enable regions to expand quickly and sustainably. In fact, the future is made here.

Are you interested in learning more? Read about Umeå university as a workplace

TAIGA is a cross-faculty center at Umeå University. Our purpose is to promote transdisciplinary research and education in Artificial Intelligence (AI), its applications and consequences, and to create a strong international research profile for Umeå University that leverages the university’s interdisciplinary breadth.

We achieve this by establishing a cross-faculty structure for transdisciplinary AI research and educational collaborations. We offer meeting places, activities, and support to inspire, challenge, and guide researchers, teachers, and students who want to develop AI-related research. Furthermore, we create and maintain international and national collaborations and networks in AI-related research and education. TAIGA is a university-wide entry point for the interested public and external parties, working to promote collaboration with the surrounding society and contributing to shaping public debate and policy development regarding AI for the good of all. Read more at TAIGA – Centre for Transdisciplinary AI (umu.se)

Project description

This postdoctoral position encompasses the TAIGA focus areas Social AI, led by Associate Professor Loïs Vanhée and Understanding (and Explaining) AI, led by Assistant Professor Dimitri Coelho Mollo.

The Social AI focus area is dedicated to the study of AI methods that can adapt to a given social context, for instance by replicating human-like behavior (e.g. social simulation, virtual characters) or by human-centric adaptation to psychosocial factors (e.g. learning assistants sensitive to classroom dynamics, personalized mental health therapeutic agents.)

The focus area Understanding (and Explaining) AI is dedicated to the study of how AI systems, especially large artificial neural networks, can be understood and explained in ways suited to different audiences, from AI researchers, to decision-makers, to the general public. This focus area uses tools from current research in philosophy of science and social epistemology to pursue an interdisciplinary investigation of what is needed for understanding and explaining AI.

Job description

The postdoctoral fellow position is open to candidates with scientific background in computer science, philosophy, AI, and related areas. Interdisciplinary interests and research focus are key, especially for what regards the interplay between philosophy of science and social AI.

While the position is administratively hosted by the Department for Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies, the postdoctoral fellow will be practically attached to and expected to participate in both Philosophy and Computer Science research communities. Depending on the main research focus and scientific background of the candidate, the postdoctoral fellow will be more active in the research environment of either the Department of Computing Science or the Department for Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies. Examples of research focus include:

Examining foundations, methodologies, and philosophical questions within and raised by Social AI research and its application.
Examining ethical or sociotechnical challenges connected to Social AI research.
Developing and assessing Social AI systems and approaches in ways informed by research in philosophy of science (e.g., philosophy of cognitive science, philosophy of comparative psychology), philosophical ethics, or related areas
Application of AI methods for supporting philosophy research (e.g. LLMs for recognizing underlying philosophical framework in arguments made by public figures)

The postdoctoral fellow will be actively involved and expected to participate in both Philosophy and Computer Science research communities, as well as in the academic life of TAIGA.

Qualifications

In order to be appointed as a postdoctoral fellow, it is required to have completed a doctoral degree or a foreign degree deemed equivalent to a doctoral degree within computer science, philosophy, AI or related areas for the position. This qualification requirement must be fulfilled no later than at the time of the employment decision.

To be appointed under the postdoctoral agreement, priority should be given to candidates who completed their doctoral degree, according to what is stipulated in the paragraph above, no later than three years prior to the application deadline. If there are special reasons, candidates who completed their doctoral degree prior to that may also be eligible. Special reasons include absence due to illness, parental leave, appointments of trust in trade union organizations, military service, or similar circumstances, as well as clinical practice or other forms of appointment/assignment relevant to the subject area.

A precondition is that the applicant has not previously been employed as a postdoctoral fellow at Umeå University for more than a year within the same or equivalent discipline.

Proficiency in written and spoken English is also required, as is a good ability to collaborate with others.

Application

The application must be written in Swedish or English and must include:

A brief description of the research interests and the reason for applying for the position
CV
List of publications
Copies of the PhD certificate and other relevant degrees
Contact details of two reference persons
Research plan (max 5 pages, references included)

The application must be submitted through the electronic recruitment system Varbi no later than October 21, 2024.

Further information

The employment is a full-time, fixed-term position for 2 years, starting January 1, 2025 unless otherwise agreed. The selected candidate is required to be present on-site in Umeå to a high degree.

For more information about the position, contact Associate Professor Loïs Vanhée (+46907865783, lois.vanhee@umu.se) or Assistant Professor Dimitri Coelho Mollo (+46907866676, dimitri.mollo@umu.se).

For information about the departments, see Department of Computing Science and Department of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies.

We look forward to receiving your application!