Call for Applications - “Shaping Shared Worlds: Autonomous Systems and the Design of Future Environments”
Events |
Dear colleagues,
we warmly invite you to contribute to the interdisciplinary conference
“Shaping Shared Worlds: Autonomous Systems and the Design of Future Environments”,
taking place at the IAS, Technical University of Munich on 9–10 September 2026.
The conference is organized by the research project “Embodied Agents and the Quest for a Sustainable Technological Future” and endorsed by the Munich Design Institute (MDI). The research project is a cooperation of Klaus Bengler (TUM School of Engineering and Design) and Yvonne Förster, Philosopher in Residence at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), TUM.
As autonomous vehicles, social robots, and smart systems increasingly shape the environments in which we live, work, and interact, they call for new ways of thinking about design, responsibility, and coexistence. No longer mere tools, these technologies act within complex socio-technical ecologies—reconfiguring urban spaces, domestic life, and ecological relations.
This conference asks: how can we meaningfully anticipate and shape future forms of living together across human, technological, and ecological domains? Do we need to move beyond human-centered design toward more relational, systemic, or more-than-human approaches? We are particularly interested in the question of functional openness: Are devices that enable a plurality of uses beyond their originally intended function more desirable for sustainable and adaptable future life-worlds? Can technological multistability and design flexibility foster engagement, inclusion, participation, and support sustainable human-machine relations?
We welcome contributions that explore:
- the design of shared environments shaped by autonomous systems
- new frameworks beyond user-centered design
- questions of multistability, adaptability, and openness in technology
- ethical, aesthetic, and societal implications of embodied AI
We invite theoretical, empirical, and practice-based contributions from across the technical sciences, humanities, and design disciplines.
Please submit an abstract of 150–200 words by June 15, 2026: yvonne.foerster@gmail.com.
We are pleased to share that travel costs will be covered in accordance with the regulations of the Technical University of Munich.
We would be delighted to welcome you to Munich for what we hope will be a thoughtful, engaged, and inspiring exchange.
With kind regards,
Yvonne Förster and Klaus Bengler