Dr Kate Darling is a renowned expert in the field of social robotics and robot ethics. As a research specialist at the MIT Media Lab, she developed her understanding of machine learning and the emotional connection between humans and robots. This topic is further explored in her TED talk titled Why We Have an Emotional Connection to Robots, which has over 1.6 million views. Kate has also been recognised by Thinkers50 as a Radar Thinker and named in the 25 Women in Robotics You Need to Know About by Robohub. The many accolades to Kate’s name prove how highly respected she is as a cyber security speaker.
Kate’s passion for robot ethics stems from her background in law, economics and intellectual property. She has researched economic incentives in copyright and patent systems, consequently becoming an intellectual property expert. Later, she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Sciences from Middlebury College before joining multiple fellowships like Harvard Berkman Klein Centre for Internet & Society, Yale Information Society Project and the Centre for Law & Economics. With such an impressive career, Kate is regularly booked to reflect on her research into robotics and ethics.
A front-runner in her field, Kate explores the near-future effects of robotic technology, as a research scientist at the MIT Media Lab. In 2016, Katie joined the MIT/BU Technology and Cyberlaw Clinic’s oversight board. Following this, in 2017, the American Bar Association awarded her the Mark T. Banner Award to honour her legal work in intellectual property. According to NBC News Kate is “one of the biggest names in science.” Her work has been featured in Vogue, Forbes, BBC, WIRED, PBS, The New Yorker, The Guardian, CBC, and many more publications. She also published her book, Creativity without Law: Challenging the Assumptions of Intellectual Property, in 2017, followed by, The New Breed in 2021.
As the connection between humans and robots develops over the next few decades, a speaker like Kate will become invaluable for businesses. She is a seasoned keynote speaker, her portfolio includes The Conference 2015: Human-Robot Relationships, Robot Ethics at Montreal 2016 and WebTomorrow 2015: Science Fiction or Reality? Kate’s speeches explore robotics’ immediate ethical, legal, and societal challenges, among other fascinating topics. Armed with her research and first-hand experiences, Kate can provide a well-informed unique view for your next event.
Dr Kate Darling is regularly booked to engage audiences at events, read their latest feedback below:
“Kate Darling was a smash hit. She was absolutely delightful. I would highly recommend her, and I would book her again in a heartbeat. Her talk is fascinating and the follow-up conversation with our CEO was terrific”
“We really enjoyed working with her, and her presentation was very well received by the audience. We felt that she really connected with them. I really appreciated how self-sufficient she was as a speaker. I really only have great things to say about our experience working with Kate and would absolutely recommend her to others”
“It was a fantastic talk. What we appreciated most about Kate is her ability to explain complex ideas in a very interesting, dynamic way through visuals, video and robot props. She has a refreshingly grounded, optimistic perspective on the future of human/machine interaction. She obviously loves her work and that excitement was contagious – participants walked away inspired and energised”
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