Professor Neil Lawrence, the inaugural DeepMind Professor of Machine Learning at the University of Cambridge, Senior AI Fellow at the the Alan Turing Institute and Visiting Professor of Machine Learning at the University of Sheffield. His topic will be "How AI Works and How it will Transform our Lives".

This is the second lecture we have organised on artificial intelligence since our lecture series began in 2018, reflecting its potentially huge impact on future human activities and its extraordinarily rapid pace of development. In his lecture, Professor Lawrence will explore what artificial intelligence means for humans, drawing on over 25 years of research and real-world deployment experience at Amazon. He will explain current AI technologies—from machine learning to large language models—and their transformative potential across science, healthcare, and industry. Central to the talk will be the question from his book The Atomic Human: what makes human intelligence unique in an age of sophisticated machines?

Professor Lawrence will address both the enormous benefits AI can deliver and the critical risks that must be managed, including the concentration of digital power. He will then go on to discuss how we can ensure AI serves humanity rather than displacing human agency, and what steps citizens can take to navigate an AI-driven future, while preserving democratic values and human autonomy.

Tickets are priced at £15, discounted to £12.50 for all purchases completed by Saturday, 15 November, to £11 for senior citizens and to £6 for sixth formers and teachers accompanying them. The price includes a glass of wine or a soft drink, which will be served after the lecture, when there will be an opportunity to mingle with other attendees and with the speaker.