2026 George Watson Public Lecture - Professor Simone Natale
About the lecture
Talking to parrots, or how to make sense of AI
In a widely cited paper that anticipated the hype around generative AI, Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT were described as “stochastic parrots” that create only the impression of linguistic competence. Yet these systems are now treated as communicative and even social partners in both professional and personal contexts - as evidenced, for instance, in users’ application of LLMs to discuss intimate concerns and mental health issues. Historicizing the metaphor of the parrot, the lecture turns to a case that at first glance seems far removed from AI: Alex, a grey parrot whose communicative behavior was studied by biologist Irene Pepperberg between 1976 and 2007. By revisiting these attempts to establish human-animal communication, the talk proposes a framework for reflecting and making sense of a present in which humans engage in exchanges with machines that are, at the same time, able and not really able to talk back.
All are welcome to attend our free event.
Event Details
- 6:00 pm - 6:30 pm
Registration/Guest arrival
Terrace Room, Level 6, Sir Llew Edwards Building (Building 14), UQ
- 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Lecture including Q&A
Terrace Room, Level 6, Sir Llew Edwards Building (Building 14), UQ
- 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Reception/Light refreshments
Terrace Room, Level 6, Sir Llew Edwards Building (Building 14), UQ
Invited Speaker
Associate Professor Simone Natale
Simone Natale is an Associate Professor in Media Theory and History at the University of Turin, Italy, and an Editor of the journal Media, Culture & Society. He is the author of numerous publications including his monograph Deceitful Media: Artificial Intelligence and Social Life after the Turing Test (Oxford University Press, 2021), which has been translated into Chinese, Italian, and Portuguese, and over 50 peer-reviewed articles in journals such as New Media and Society, Journal of Communication, Communication Theory, Information, Communication & Society, and Communications of the ACM. He was awarded research grants by institutions including the AHRC and the ESRC in the UK, the Humboldt Foundation in Germany, and the Ministry of University and Research in Italy, and has worked as expert on AI for leading international institutions and in projects such as the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) and the Brookings Institution’s Global Task Force on AI in Education.
About George Watson
This lecture hosted by UQ's School of Communication and Arts is supported by the George Watson Visiting Fellowship.
The George Watson Fellowship was established by a gift from Mrs M.L. Watson in honour of her son George Watson.
The object of the fellowship is to promote visits (biennial) to the University of Queensland by scholars in any of the fields of study taught by the School of Communication and Arts in order that staff and students of the University may benefit from their special knowledge and experience.
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Enquiries
If you have any questions or would like to get in touch with the Event Organisers, please contact: engagement@hass.uq.edu.au
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