Do you use ChatGPT or Claude daily for work? Mark Carrigan, Senior Lecturer in Education at Manchester Institute of Education, joins the podcast to discuss why we might be misdiagnosing the harms of generative AI. His research suggests the problems aren't inherent to the technology itself, but arise when AI systems meet the already broken bureaucracies of higher education and other sectors.

Mark introduces the LLM Interaction Cycle, a framework he developed with philosopher of technology, Milan Stürmer, to understand how we engage with AI over time through three phases: positioning (how we assign roles to the AI), articulation (how we put our needs into words), and attunement (the sense that the AI understands us). He explains how use that begins as purely transactional often drifts toward something more affective as models build memory and context about us, and why this drift matters for how we think about ethical AI use.

We go on to explore teacher agency in the age of generative AI, examining why fear of appearing ignorant prevents honest conversations between educators and students. Mark discusses three key risks facing universities:

• lock-in (dependency on specific platforms),
• loss of reflection (increasingly habitual rather than thoughtful use), and;
• commercial capture (vendor interests shaping institutional practices).

He argues that reflective use isn't just beneficial but ethically necessary, yet the pressures facing academics and students make reflection increasingly difficult.

The conversation finishes by examining why universities in financial crisis are particularly vulnerable to both the promises and pitfalls of AI adoption, how institutional AI strategies risk creating new waves of disruption, and why understanding student realities (including significant paid work commitments) is essential to addressing concerns about AI in education. Mark concludes by making the case that we cannot understand the problems of generative AI without understanding the wider systemic crisis in higher education.

This episode launches our new short series featuring conversations from the Building Bridges: A Symposium on Human-AI Interaction held at the University of Warwick on 21 November 2025. The symposium was organised by Dr Yanyan Li, Xianzhi Chen, and Kaiqi Yu, and jointly funded by the Institute of Advanced Study Conversations Scheme and the Doctoral College Networking Fund, with sponsorship from Warwick Students' Union.

AI Ethics Now

Exploring the ethical dilemmas of AI in Higher Education and beyond.

A University of Warwick IATL Podcast

This podcast series was developed by Dr Tom Ritchie and Dr Jennie Mills, the module leads of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠IATL module ⁠"The AI Revolution: Ethics, Technology, and Society"⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ at the University of Warwick. The AI Revolution module explores the history, current state, and potential futures of artificial intelligence, examining its profound impact on society, individuals, and the very definition of 'humanness.'

This podcast was initially designed to provide a deeper dive into the key themes explored each week in class. We want to share the discussions we have had to help offer a broader, interdisciplinary perspective on the ethical and societal implications of artificial intelligence to a wider audience.

Join each fortnight for new critical conversations on AI Ethics with local, national, and international experts.

We will discuss:

• Ethical Dimensions of AI: Fairness, bias, transparency, and accountability.
• Societal Implications: How AI is transforming industries, economies, and our understanding of humanity.
• The Future of AI: Potential benefits, risks, and shaping a future where AI serves humanity.

If you want to join the podcast as a guest, contact Tom.Ritchie@warwick.ac.uk.