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Critical Tech Cafe Symposium on Humans and Agents

April 1, 2026
Meeting Room 2 South W210, Duncan Student Center

Join us Wednesday April 1, 2026 for an afternoon symposium featuring multiple interdisciplinary scholars leading discussions on the ways in which humans and AI agents are increasingly connected.

Symposium on Humans and Agents. Abstract blue figures with yellow glowing screens, connected by a network of lines.

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Session 1: Values and Virtues of Agents | Research Seminar 1:00 - 2:00pm

Maria Milkowski, PhD Candidate, Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame

Abstract: We live in a world where autonomous agents developed by different designers increasingly interact in shared environments, where conflicting goals and limited coordination mechanisms can produce harmful outcomes. As reliance on autonomous decision-makers grows, ensuring that such agents behave ethically and predictably becomes a central challenge for multi-agent systems. This talk examines several mechanisms that may promote socially beneficial behavior among autonomous agents. Using the Sugarscape agent-based model, I first explore whether structural incentives can mitigate the effects of selfish behavior in agent societies. In particular, I examine how redistributive mechanisms inspired by universal basic income (UBI) may influence collective outcomes when agents pursue individual goals. I then consider the limits of purely incentive-based approaches by introducing scenarios in which agents must explicitly reason about ethical behavior in order to avoid destructive conflict. Finally, I turn to communication dynamics in multi-agent environments, examining how large language model agents coordinate and deceive one another in the social deduction game Among Us. This setting provides insight into how strategic communication and ambiguity emerge in cooperative–competitive contexts. Together, these studies explore how incentives, ethical reasoning, and communication interact to shape the behavior of autonomous agents in shared environments.

David Radke, PhD, Computer Science, University of Waterloo

Abstract: It has been argued that a main contributor to the development of human cognition has come from our ability to form groups and effectively collaborate. The field of “Cooperative AI” focuses on the class of problems in which artificial intelligence (AI) agents must learn to effectively cooperate, specifically in environments with mixed incentives that are challenging for AI agents (e.g., social dilemmas such as the Prisoner’s Dilemma). With the growing evolution and integration of AI in society, it will be important for agents to be capable of cooperating with humans across challenging environments. My research analyzes how social structure across a multiagent system, and an agent’s internal preferences within that social structure, impact the ability for reinforcement learning (RL) agents to learn different behaviors in environments with mixed incentives. In this talk, I will discuss how sub-groups (i.e., teams) and individual agent preferences impact the feedback loops of information that guide how a population of agents learn from experience.
 

Patrick Gamez, PhD, Reilly Center for Science, Technology, and Values, University of Notre Dame

Abstract: The Notre Dame Program on Artificial Intelligence and the Development of Ethics in Agents (or ND-PAIDEIA) is an NEH-funded research network that brings together members of the Notre Dame and larger academic community in order to study AI through the lens of the concepts of agency and virtue. In this talk, I will attempt to lay out the vast array of issues that even this relatively modest goal raises, and how they inform the work we do at ND-PAIDEIA.

The current explosion of interest in AI can arguably be traced to the development of transformer architectures that allowed for the creation, first, of a Large Language Models and, subsequently large multimodal models, in brief, generative AI. And LLMs still largely form the core of an approach to AI that is referred to as “agentic AI,” that is, AI that is sort of like an “agent.” This is often taken to mean an increased degree of autonomy, but the meanings of “agency,” and the distinctive ethical concerns that creating agents raises, are multifarious. I will introduce some of the philosophical and humanistic vocabulary and tools that we use to make sense of these phenomena.

Session 2: Should we (Ref)use Generative AI? | Workshop 2:15 - 3:15pm

We can use gen AI, but should we? Too often this is posed as a rhetorical question rather than a gateway for serious inquiry about the distinction between responsibility and refusal. This is a participatory workshop open to staff, students, and faculty interested in articulating the conditions for and tensions of adopting or refusing AI in our daily contexts.

There are limited seats in the workshop so you must register in advance. You will be notified if you are accepted. If we reach capacity, you will be added to a waitlist and notified by March 31 if space becomes available.

Session 3: Made by Humans | Keynote Panel 3:30-5:00pm

In 2026, the rapid development of generative AI continues to stir feelings of excitement, uncertainty, and fatigue. While navigating the waves of false hype and true innovation, we (humans; a real human made this!) are called to question and reconfigure our individual and collective goals, whether in personal, professional, or societal contexts. To explore related questions of agency and impact, this session features an intermedia composition produced by David Bird and a presentation by Marcel O'Gorman. Drawing on expertise from the digital arts and humanities, this panel investigates creative and critical perspectives on what humans could make of AI and, in return, what AI could make of humans.
 

Marcel O’Gorman, PhD, University of Waterloo

Marcel O’Gorman is a University Research Chair, Professor of English, and Founding Director of the Critical Media Lab (CML) at the University of Waterloo, where he teaches courses, leads collaborative projects, and directs workshops that combine research/creation and critical media studies. O’Gorman has published widely about the impacts of technology, including his books E-Crit and Necromedia and articles in Slate, The Atlantic, and The Globe and Mail. He is also a digital artist with an international portfolio of exhibitions and performances.

David Bird, D.M.A., University of Notre Dame

David Bird is a composer, producer, and multimedia artist. His work explores the dramatic potential of electroacoustic and multimedia environments, often highlighting the relationships between technology and the individual. Bird's compositions have been performed at venues such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, as well as festivals including the Gaudeamus Festival, Wien Modern, SPOR Festival, MATA Festival, Musica Electronica Nova Festival, Festival Mixtur, and more. David Bird is an Assistant Professor of Music Technology and Digital Media at the University of Notre Dame.