Lunchtime Fireside Chat: AI in Education and Human Flourishing
4 June 2026
Save the date for a lunchtime fireside chat hosted by the Centre for Human-Inspired AI (CHIA) Early Career Community, in collaboration with the AI & Education Community. The event will feature Carla Aerts, Dr Emily Goodacre, and Dr Minja Axelsson, exploring the intersection of AI, education, and psychology.
Following the talks and discussion, attendees are invited to continue the conversation over a complimentary light lunch.
When: Thursday, 4 June
Time: 12:30–1:30 PM
Where: Seminar Room C, 17 Mill Lane, Cambridge
Carla Aerts: A leading international interdisciplinarian at the intersection of education and emerging technologies, Carla is reshaping how we think about learning futures informed by insights from the science of learning, learning sciences and the odd sprinkle of philosophy.
She has extensive experience working with stakeholders from policy to learners on the use of AI and technologies in education and learning, as well as considering the futures of education and the necessary strategies that are required for rethinking what education might look like.
As a sought-after speaker, consultant, and mentor, Carla works with universities, schools, policy, consultancies, foundations, publishers, NGOs, startups and learning organizations navigating seismic shifts in learning and teaching. She’s fascinated by the arrival of new forms of (artificial) intelligence into human experience and what that means for humanity’s future. (Her blog: www.trainofthought.me)
Dr Emily Goodacre: Dr Emily Goodacre Is a postdoctoral researcher in child development and AI play. Her recent research with PEDAL at the University of Cambridge examined children’s play with generative AI toys, exploring both perceptions of AI toys and how children aged five and under play with them. Her research takes a developmentally-informed approach to understand the implications of AI toys and inform best practices in toy design. Her work and resulting recommendations for practice and policy have received international recognition through several media outlets, including the BBC and The Guardian.
Dr Minja Axelsson: Dr Minja Axelsson is a postdoctoral researcher at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence and a Teaching Fellow at the University of Cambridge. She specialises in the ethical design of social robots and is interested in the design, ethics, user perceptions and experiences, and socio-technical perspectives of human–AI and human–robot interaction. Her work has been featured in several publications, including the BBC, which covered her research on social robots as mental wellbeing coaches.