Department of Philosophy

College of Humanities and Sciences

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Events

Flyer advertising the Spring 2025 Philosophy and Public Affairs lecture, presented by William D'Alessandro on the future of AI.

Spring 2025 Philosophy and Public Affairs Lecture

Date: Thursday, Apr 17, 2025

As AI systems continue to improve, we may give them so much power that humanity "loses control of its future". Should we be worried? Some philosophers have argued that this sort of domination is always bad because of the characteristic harms it causes. Professor D'Alessandro will argue that, in fact, powerful AI might dominate humans without causing these harms.

Annual Events

Throughout the year, our department hosts philosophers from around the country for our lecture series, in addition to hosting a philosophy camp each summer for high school students. Select a link below to see the speakers, topics and information on how to attend one of our department-hosted lectures, or to learn more and apply for summer camp.

Philosophy and Public Affairs Lecture Series

Free and open to the public, the lecture series brings in philosophers who compel audiences to really think and talk about deep questions and complex topics.

Summer Camp

Each year, we offer a day camp during the summer for high school students interested in asking big questions, learning about new perspectives and seeing the world in a new way.

The program is on hiatus for Summer 2025 and will return in 2026. Check back in the fall for further details and please contact fritzj@vcu.edu if you have any questions!