Interrogating Synthetic Data: A Workshop on Politics, Epistemologies, and Synthesis

Interrogating Synthetic Data: A Workshop on Politics, Epistemologies, and Synthesis

Generative AI has thrust synthetic media to centre stage, but synthetic data has longer histories and wider applications from war to finance to software development. This workshop will collaboratively examine the politics, power, and epistemologies of synthetic data and synthetic media. Anchored in A/Prof Michael Richardson’s research on nonhuman witnessing and the future of war, the workshop invites participants to bring their own research interests, case studies, and questions from across domains and disciplines.

Please note: this is an in person event only (there will be no hybrid option).

A/Prof Michael Richardson (UNSW)

Michael Richardson is a writer, researcher, and teacher living and working on Gadigal and Bidjigal country. An Associate Professor at UNSW Sydney and an Associate Investigator with ADM+S, his research examines how technology, power, and culture shape knowledge in war, security, and surveillance. His latest book is Nonhuman Witnessing: War, Climate, and Data After the End of the World (Duke University Press, 2024).