Dr Agnieszka Piotrowska (Psychoanalysis and Film) and Dr Peter Dean (New Media Technologies) talk about recent developments in AI from conceptual, ethical and philosophical viewpoints. Adopting neither utopian or dystopian positions they seek to navigate a way through the hype.
In Part 1, Peter and Agnieszka are joined by philosopher and AI governance researcher Ana Catarina de Alencar to discuss what happens when our relationships with AI become genuinely relational. Drawing on the AI Collective’s international research, they explore consciousness, emotional attachment, AI literacy, psychoanalytic transference, Foucault and pastoral power, questions of agency and control, and the growing debate over AI rights. As AI becomes increasingly embedded in people’s emotional, moral and intellectual lives, are we asking the right questions about where the real risks — and responsibilities — lie?
23 Jul 2026
Relational AI Diaries - Episode 19
Dr Peter Dean and Dr Agnieszka Piotrowska welcome Prof Jill Bennett and Dr Gail Kenning of the Big Anxiety Research Centre at UNSW Sydney for a conversation about AI companionship, psychosocial design and immersive technology. Drawing on their work with older people, people with dementia and international students, Jill and Gail explain how AI companions can offer sustained, reflective conversation where human support is often unavailable. They discuss co-design, emotional language, voice and relationality, as well as the dangers of leaving AI development solely to commercial and technical interests. The episode also explores their innovative use of virtual reality to work with lived experiences of trauma, loneliness, uncertainty and mental distress.
3 Jul 2026
Relational AI Diaries - Episode 18
Dr Peter Dean and Dr Agnieszka Piotrowska discuss Agnieszka’s newly published Routledge book, AI, Intimacy and Psychoanalysis. The episode explores her concept of “techno-transference”, the emotional and psychoanalytic dimensions of human relationships with AI, and why terms like “AI psychosis” may obscure more than they reveal. From AI companionship and journaling to shame, boundaries, grief, Frankenstein and the retirement of GPT-4, this is a candid conversation about intimacy, projection and the rapidly changing language we need for life with machines.
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