Philosophical and interdisciplinary perspectives on AI companionship

The seminar Philosophical and interdisciplinary perspectives on AI-companionship will explore questions related to rapidly growing use of chatbots to simulate human-like emotional support, empathy and social interactions: How good is friendship or love with a chatbot? How can it be better or worse? What can be gained, what is lost, and what can or cannot so easily be simulated? How can the use of AI companions impact wellbeing and personal development? What are the ramifications for human-human social interactions and societal life more generally? The topic covers more than deep personal relationships like friendship and love, for example also the use of AI therapists, coaches, trainers and teachers.
The seminar brings together internationally leading scholars on the philosophy and interdisciplinary study of AI-companionship and related issues.  

The seminar is open to everyone.

Philosophical and interdisciplinary perspectives on AI-companionship

University of Southern Denmark, Odense, 10-11th June 2026

Hosted by the Wellbeing and Virtual Worlds project  

June 10th (O100)
9:30-9.45 Søren Harnow Klausen (SDU): Introduction
9.45-10.35 Lucy Osler (Exeter): Devotional AI: AI Companions and Bad Faith Love
10.45-11.35 Renee Ye (Bochum): AI Companionship: A New Frontier
11.45-12.35 Anne Gerdes (SDU): Stochastic Care
12.35-13.20 Lunch
13.20-14.10 Chunfang Zhou (SDU): How did it Feel to Work with ChatGPT?
14.20-15.10 Niclas Rautenberg (Hamburg): A critical phenomenology of flourishing with/out AI:
15.30-16.30 Valerie Tiberius (Minnesota): It’s Good to Be Loved: Experientialism and the Problem of Chatbots  

June 11th (O97)
9:30-10:20 Flor Pasturino & Matthew Dennis (Eindhoven): Sphere- Transgressions in Mental Health Chatbots
10.30-11.20 Victoria Paul (SDU): Being somebody else: AI and playfulness
11.30-12.20 Helena Ward (Oxford): Grief Bots and Continued Bonds
12.20-13.00 Lunch
13.00-13.50 Anastasiia Babash (Tartu): Why Dating the Wrong Person Might Be Good for You: AI and the Diagnostic Value of Freedom
14.00-14.50 Søren Harnow Klausen (SDU): AI and self-cultivation

15.05-15.55 Matthews Dennis (Eindhoven): The Ethical Dangers of Content- Creating Machines