David J. Gunkel, Ph.D.
Presidential Research, Scholarship and Artistry Professor
Distinguished Teaching Professor
David J. Gunkel is an award-winning educator, researcher and author, specializing in the philosophy of technology with a focus on the moral and legal challenges of artificial intelligence and robots. He is the author of over 115 scholarly articles and has published 19 books.
Research Areas
- Artificial intelligence
- Communicative AI
- Generative AI
- AI law and ethics
- Human-machine communication
- Philosophy of technology
- Web design and programming
Publications
Books
- The Machine Question: Critical Perspectives on AI, Robots, and Ethics. MIT Press, 2012.
- Robot Rights . MIT Press, 2018.
- How to Survive a Robot Invasion: Responsibility, Rights, and AI. Routledge, 2019.
- An Introduction to Communication and Artificial Intelligence. Polity, 2020.
- Person, Thing, Robot: A Moral and Legal Ontology for the 21st Century and Beyond. MIT Press, 2023.
- The Handbook on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. Edward Elgar, 2024.
- AI for Communication. Routledge, 2024.
- Communicative AI: A Critical Introduction to Large Language Models. Polity, 2025.
- Understanding Artificial Intelligence: A Critical Introduction for the Humanities and Social Sciences. Polity, 2026.
Journal Articles
- The Différance Engine: Large Language Models and Poststructuralism. AI & Society, 2025.
- Does Writing Have a Future? Philosophy & Digitality, 2025.
- Cut the Crap: A Critical Response to ‘ChatGPT Is Bullshit’. Ethics and Information Technology, 27(23), 2025.
- Literary Theory for Large Language Models”. Newhouse Impact Journal, 1(1), Article 6, 2023.
- Duty Now and for the Future: Communication, Ethics, and Artificial Intelligence. Journal of Media Ethics, 38(4), 2023, 198–210.
- Beyond Ownership: Human–Robot Relationships Between Property and Personhood (with Marco Dehnert). New Media & Society, 2023.
- ChatGPT: Deconstructing the Debate and Moving It Forward. (with Mark Coeckelbergh). AI & Society, June 21, 2023.
- The Symptom of Ethics: Rethinking Ethics in the Face of the Machine. Human-Machine Communication, 4(1), 2022.
- Moral Status and Intelligent Robots (with John-Stewart Gordon). Southern Journal of Philosophy, 60(1), 2022, 88–117.
- Debate: What Is Personhood in the Age of AI? (with Jordan Wales). AI & Society, 36, 2021, 473–486.
- I Saw It on YouTube! How Online Videos Shape Perceptions of Mind, Morality, and Fears About Robots. New Media & Society, 23(11), 2020, 3312–3331.
- Mind the Gap: Responsible Robotics and the Problem of Responsibility. Ethics and Information Technology, 2017.
- The Internet of Things: When Your Toaster and Self-Driving Car Start Talking About You Behind Your Back. Explorations in Media Ecology, 16(2–3), 2017, 251–254.
- Computational Interpersonal Communication: Communication Studies and Spoken Dialogue Systems. Communication +1, 5(1), 2016.
- Apocalypse Not, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Machine (with Bill Cripe). Kritikos, 11, 2014.
- A Vindication of the Rights of Machines. Philosophy and Technology, 27(1), 2014, 113–132.
- Communication and Artificial Intelligence: Opportunities and Challenges for the 21st Century. Communication +1, 1(1), 2012.
- Thinking Otherwise: Ethics, Technology, and Other Subjects. Ethics and Information Technology, 9(3), 2007, 165–177.
- The Machine Question: Ethics, Alterity, Technology. Explorations in Media Ecology, 5(4), 2006, 259–278.