David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
Professor - Northern Illinois University (USA). Award-winning author of the books The Machine Question, Robot Rights, Person-Thing-Robot, Of Remixology, and Deconstruction. https://gunkelweb.com
David J. Gunkel is an American academic and Presidential Teaching Professor of Communication Studies at Northern Illinois University. He teaches courses in web design and programming, information and communication technology (ICT), and cyberculture. His research and publications examine the philosophical assumptions and ethical consequences of ICT. .. more
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David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Nov 15
Deconstruction
An accessible introduction to a concept often considered impossibly abstruse, demonstrating its power as a conceptual tool in the twenty-first century.This v...
mitpress.mit.edu
Professional Raison d'être:
I apply the theory and practice of #Deconstruction to emerging technology (#Algorithms, #AI, #robots, etc.), overturning and disrupting the traditional binary oppositions by which we have made sense of our tools and ourselves. mitpress.mit.edu/978026254247...
I apply the theory and practice of #Deconstruction to emerging technology (#Algorithms, #AI, #robots, etc.), overturning and disrupting the traditional binary oppositions by which we have made sense of our tools and ourselves. mitpress.mit.edu/978026254247...
WEF 2026: Yuval Noah Harari Says AI Is Not a Tool — It’s an Agent That Can Rule Humans | AI1G
YouTube video by DRM News
www.youtube.com
Yuval Noah Harari at Davos asking the question that I have formulated, investigated, and answered in "Person, Thing, Robot" @mitpress.bsky.social It's nice when the rest of the world catches up to your research.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJB7...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJB7...
In defense of artificial suffering - Philosophical Studies
Philosophical Studies - The ability to suffer, in the case of artificial entities, is often viewed as a moral turning point—once detected, there is no going back, and the moral landscape is...
doi.org
In Defense of Artificial Suffering
New essay from @kamilmamak.bsky.social and the first published contribution to the "Superintelligent Robots" special issue of "Philosophical Studies" @springer.springernature.com that is being edited by John-Stewart Gordon and myself.
doi.org/10.1007/s110...
New essay from @kamilmamak.bsky.social and the first published contribution to the "Superintelligent Robots" special issue of "Philosophical Studies" @springer.springernature.com that is being edited by John-Stewart Gordon and myself.
doi.org/10.1007/s110...
Reposted by David J. Gunkel
Bellwether Postdoctoral Scholar - School of Information
University of California, Berkeley is hiring. Apply now!
aprecruit.berkeley.edu
Come work with me! We have an elite team at the I School that would be thrilled to have you! 🙂
aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05222
aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05222
Today I resolve the #AI welfare debate by circumventing the hard problem of consciousness altogether. 11am PST during the @sentientfutures.bsky.social summit. San Francisco.
I had this exact example in mind, when I read and replied to your initial post. "Smile" is perhaps the best illustration of your initial question: "Is the updated version righting a historic wrong or descrating a classic?"
This is the operative question for all restoration efforts like this: "Are they righting a historic wrong or descrating a classic?"
Newly published interview in "Fuori Luogo. Journal of Sociology of the Territory, Tourism, Technology"
serena.sharepress.it/index.php/fu...
serena.sharepress.it/index.php/fu...
Nice! This is your "told you so" moment.
Signage
open.spotify.com
First single from the Trash Kickers, featuring Stanisław Gunkel on guitar and production. When I first heard it, I thought it must have been early Dictators..which just means we have not heard stuff like this for a few decades. Highly recommended.
open.spotify.com/track/4eHKJT...
open.spotify.com/track/4eHKJT...
- Publication Alert -
"Nominal Problems: From Artificial Intelligence to Cybernetics." Focus article in the latest issue of "Reti Saperi Linguaggi" the Italian Journal of Cognitive Sciences. www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.12832...
"Nominal Problems: From Artificial Intelligence to Cybernetics." Focus article in the latest issue of "Reti Saperi Linguaggi" the Italian Journal of Cognitive Sciences. www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.12832...
The one slide from my presentation for the @sentientfutures.bsky.social Summit that pretty much sums up everything I am going to be talking about. 8 February 2026, San Francisco USA www.sentientfutures.ai/sfsbay2026
Do you even have to ask?
Who needs all that air anyways?
The Peoples Republic of California (PRC)
A pilsner that I do not know? How is that possible?
I teamed up with @annapuzio.bsky.social and @joshgellers.bsky.social to write this polemic response to recent criticisms of the relational turn in #AIEthics, including the recently published "Dangerous Liaisons" from Adrienne de Ruiter. @springer.springernature.com
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
It's a stream of consciousness. Thank you for letting us come along for the ride.
Hidden human labor is distorting perceptions of AGI
At a Warner Bros studio near Hollywood in the fall of 2024, Tesla staged a glitzy showcase of its AI progress. Acting as master of ceremonies, Elon Musk introdu
agi.fightersteel.com
I had the opportunity to talk with Thomas Macaulay for his recent piece about the invisible human labor behind #AI. Published today in @agiethicsnews.bsky.social. And it's always a pleasure to share the spotlight with the incomparable Julie Carpenter. agi.fightersteel.com/hidden-human...
Bandcamp Banned My Robot - The Big Dada Project (2026)
YouTube video by David Gunkel
youtube.com
What's an #AI music experiment like The Big Dada Project to do when a platform like @bandcamp.com issues a blanket prohibition against #AI generated content? Easy answer, generate a song about it. gunkelweb.com/BigDada
youtube.com/shorts/BfJBd...
youtube.com/shorts/BfJBd...
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 17
Is a Derridean Critique of Generative AI Possible? Writing Machines and Logocentrism without Subject - The OLR Supplement
Finally, a critique of AI that deconstructs the humanist subject on which most existing critiques rely
olrsupplement.com
#Derrida & #AI is having a moment.
New essay from Víctor Betriu Yáñez and published in OLR. With shout-outs to three of my recent publications on this subject. (@philiplaughlin.bsky.social good timing for "The Différance Engine" book @mitpress.bsky.social)
olrsupplement.com/2026/01/15/i...
New essay from Víctor Betriu Yáñez and published in OLR. With shout-outs to three of my recent publications on this subject. (@philiplaughlin.bsky.social good timing for "The Différance Engine" book @mitpress.bsky.social)
olrsupplement.com/2026/01/15/i...
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 16
The Machine Question: Rethinking Moral Philosophy in the Face of Others. - My chapter for "Robophilosophy" @mitpress.bsky.social The book is now available #OpenAccess and you can get your own copy by following this link:
direct.mit.edu/books/oa-edi...
direct.mit.edu/books/oa-edi...
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 15
As much as I love the Alfred Jarry play, I don't think I was prepared for the recent staging of it as an immersive experience.
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 14
What's the point of waiting for the debates about #AI #consciousness to be resolved? Rights are a no brainer. direct.mit.edu/books/oa-mon...
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 14
Just completed the final item--the Acknowledgments--for the "Understanding Artificial Intelligence" book, coming soon from @politybooks.bsky.social And like "The Machine Question" @mitpress.bsky.social 2012, I again conclude by thanking the machines.
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 14
The Age of Academic Slop is Upon Us
what happens when AI automates "normal science"?
hegemon.substack.com
Finally something about #LLM involvement in academic publishing that gets it right. The problem is not #AISlop vs. genuine human generated content. The problem--actually the opportunity AND challenge--is "Automatenwissenschaft." Short essay by @seva.bsky.social
hegemon.substack.com/p/the-age-of...
hegemon.substack.com/p/the-age-of...
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 13
Today is publication release date for "Robophilosophy" edited by Johanna Seibt, @raulhakli.bsky.social and Marco Nørskov. My contribution (chapter one) is titled "The Machine Question: Rethinking Moral Philosophy in the Face of Others." @mitpress.bsky.social mitpress.mit.edu/978026204498...
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 11
Must have been delicious.
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 10
Airbus...decent airplane.
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 10
Airplane food...and I used the word "food" with some hesitation.
David Gunkel
@davidgunkel.bsky.social
· Jan 9
Excellent...see you soon.