Best Alan Turing Institute Podcasts (2025)

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The Cyber Cold War: How AI is Defending Our Critical National Infrastructure 48:37

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3M ago48:37

48:37

New podcast - defending our critical national infrastructure. Podcast host Amelia Jabry is joined by co-host and Turing Principal Research Scientist, Vasilios Mavroudis to explore how AI is reshaping both the defence and attack of vital systems like healthcare, energy and transport. With the help of special guest, Microsoft’s Director of Global AI …

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Alternative answers to Google's most searched AI questions - Tldr Wrapped 34:51

9M ago34:51

34:51

For the final episode of series two, Jonah puts this year's most searched for AI questions to Smera - What is AI? Are AI detectors accurate? Has AI passed the Turing test? When will AI take over? Is AI good? Although the questions seem relatively straightforward at first glance, you might be surprised how insightful Smera's answers are... Episode n…

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How did misinformation influence elections in 2024? And can AI help sustainability in space? 44:49

10M ago44:49

44:49

We began this series with an introduction to misinformation. What is it? How does it spread on social media? And what impact could it have on elections in this election packed year? As we begin to conclude this series, Smera and Jonah invite Sam Stockwell from the Turing’s Centre for Emerging Technology and Security (CETaS) to answer our burning qu…

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Defining AI safety 54:15

11M ago54:15

54:15

Ed and David chat with Professor Ibrahim Habli, Research Director at the Centre for Assuring Autonomy in the University of York, and director of the UKRI Centre for Doctoral Training in Safe AI Systems. The conversation covers the topic of defining and contextualising AI safety and risk, given existence of existing safety practices from other indus…

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Digital Death, Quantum Computing and AI job seeking 46:16

11M ago46:16

46:16

It's spooky Halloween and this month, Jonah and Smera are joined by experts in digital culture and heritage, Dr. Jenny Kidd of Cardiff University and Dr Eva Nieto McAvoy of King’s College London, to explore the eerie intersection of AI and digital immortality. Plus, Jonah and Smera break down the basics of quantum computing amid claims that 2025 is…

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AI for law enforcement, AI Treaty and dual-use technology 45:53

12M ago45:53

45:53

Join Jonah and Smera as they dive into current AI and data science news. This month, we're focusing on AI in law enforcement: what are the potential dangers and societal implications? We're joined by special guest and expert in human-AI interaction, Dr. Melina Kunar, as she shares her insights on the profound impact AI can have in fields like healt…

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Dead internet theory, AI Bubble and Fake Obituaries 39:23

1y ago39:23

39:23

This month, Smera and Jessie dive deep into the intriguing world of conspiracy theories, welcoming Chris Thomas from the Turing to discuss the controversial "dead internet theory." They explore the notion that much of the internet is now a fabricated landscape, questioning the authenticity of online interactions and content. In addition, the episod…

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London Data Week, AI landlords and the Olympics AI agenda 46:50

1y ago46:50

46:50

On this month's episode, Jonah and Smera push AI to the side and get all excited about data, as they travel around London to meet with some of the people behind London Data Week 2024. From feminist meme-making workshops to live brain scanning, plus, London Data Week’s co-founder, Jen Ding, gives us the inside scoop. Also this month, Smera looks int…

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The cutting edge of emotional and cognitive neuroscience 45:50

1y ago45:50

45:50

On this episode, Bea and Jessie are joined by Becky Inkster and Mark Sheppard, co-founders of The Laß; a fusion of science, creativity and personal reflection. Collaborating with famous musicians, dancers and members of the public, Becky and Mark use EEG brain activity technology to visualise poignant moments. They hope to offer both internal and e…

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AI politicians, the voice of Her and animal communications 49:10

1y ago49:10

49:10

As the UK’s general elections approach, we take a closer look at some of the novel characters emerging in the race to leadership. This month Smera and Jonah are joined by Michael Katell, an Ethics Fellow in the Turing’s Public Policy Programme, to discuss AI Steve – the chatbot standing in this year’s election. Smera gives the lowdown on Scarlett J…

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Misinformation in democracy, a robot who serves apples and generative porn 37:44

1+ y ago37:44

37:44

We’re back for a brand new series of too long didn’t read! This month Smera and Jonah are joined by Megan Hughes of the Turing’s Centre for Emerging Technology and Security to inform us about misinformation during election periods, and assures us to not always believe the hype. Smera and Jonah also discuss some of the latest breakthroughs with robo…

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AI for Cyber Defence (AICD) research centre 46:36

1+ y ago46:36

46:36

To what extent can a computer network be actively managed and defended by intelligent autonomous agents? In this episode, Ed and Anneca talk to Vasilios Mavroudis and Chris Hicks explore this question and more. Vas and Chris lead the Turing’s AI for Cyber Defence (AICD) research centre which seeks to fundamentally transform the way in which we secu…

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Tldr Special - AI UK 2024 24:18

1+ y ago24:18

24:18

In this special episode ahead of series two, Smera and Jonah give us a whistle-stop tour of the UK’s national showcase of data science and AI - AI UK. The event’s producer, Lillian Hughes talks us through some of the programme highlights and Smera and Jonah chat to participants including Michael Wooldridge (University of Oxford), Doug Gurr (The Ala…

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Our AI Futures - Lord Chris Holmes and the AI Bill 33:07

1+ y ago33:07

33:07

On this episode of The Turing Podcast Bea and Anneca are joined by Lord Chris Holmes, Britain’s most successful Paralympic swimmer and an active member of the House of Lords with a policy focus on digital technology for public good. Connect with Lord Holmes on Linked In Explore our regular news AI news podcast, too long didn't read…

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Project Bluebird: Revolutionising Air Traffic Control with AI and digital twins 55:42

1+ y ago55:42

55:42

The Turing Podcast revisits Project Bluebird; a fascinating collaboration aiming to solve some of the biggest and most complex problems in air traffic control with digital twins and AI. Join Ed as he sits down with Nick Pepper of The Alan Turing Institute, George De Ath of the University of Exeter and Marc Thomas of NATS - the team behind Project B…

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Series wrap up: Listeners questions answered and the stories that didn’t make the cut 17:26

1+ y ago17:26

17:26

In this, the final episode of this season of tldr, Smera and Jonah delve into their post bag and attempt answer some listeners’ questions. Also, Jonah asks Smera about some of the stories that didn't make the cut for this series. With new developments in artificial intelligence happening at lightning speed, it can be hard to keep up. That's where t…

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AI for Cyber Defence 52:10

2y ago52:10

52:10

This week the podcast, the hosts are joined by Kate Highnam and Myles Foley, both of whom are PhD candidates at Imperial College London working at the intersection of machine learning and cyber security. Kate and Myles were part of a team who last year won the CAGE challenge (Cyber Autonomy Gym for Experimentation), with their reinforcement learnin…

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How Santa could implement AI and the career journey of our AI professional 18:16

2y ago18:16

18:16

In this special festive episode Smera and Jonah are recruited by Santa and his elves to discuss how AI could increase productivity for the festive friends at this busy time of year. Jonah also asks Smera all about her professional journey that led to her becoming a researcher in Data Justice and Global Ethical Futures. With new developments in arti…

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AI gods, child protection and Britcoin 36:08

2y ago36:08

36:08

In this week’s episode, Jessie stands in for Jonah and alongside Smera, the pair explore new AI-worshipping religions, the ever-growing concerns around children and online pornography, and the emergence of a new kind of digital currency. With new developments in artificial intelligence happening at lightning speed, it can be hard to keep up. That's…

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Building Digital Tools for Polar Research 39:24

2y ago39:24

39:24

This week on The Turing Podcast we chat about some of the research going on in the collaborations between the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) and The Alan Turing Institute, including efforts to automate the route planning of ships in polar regions, and the building of a digital twin for Antarctica! The hosts are joined by Dr Scott Hosking and Dr Jon…

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Internet shutdowns, Pixel perfect art analysis and the AI will see you now 38:46

2y ago38:46

38:46

In this week’s episode, Jonah and Smera tackle internet shutdowns, drawing from recent global events to understand the wide-reaching impacts of disconnectivity; Jonah gets philosophical (again) discussing the latest technology being used to analyse art and Smera warns of the dangers of trusting a chatbot with our mental health. This show comes with…

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Data Science for the Arts and Humanities 50:36

2y ago50:36

50:36

This week the hosts chat with Dr Katie McDonough and Dr Daniel Wilson. Katie is a lecturer in Digital Humanities in the Department of History at Lancaster University and a Senior Research Fellow at The Alan Turing Institute. Daniel is a Turing Research Fellow and historian of science and technology. The episode covers their research at the Turing a…

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In-effective altruism, a brief history of cyber security and can AI read minds? 37:18

2y ago37:18

37:18

In this week's episode, Jonah and Smera talk celebs, CEO's and Open AI's rollercoaster week, the pair look back at some of recent history's worst cybercrime attacks and we learn about the incredible potential of ChatGPT in neuroscience. Plus, the cutting-edge AI that can predict heart attacks up to ten years before they happen. With new development…

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Algorithmic Justice 52:03

2y ago52:03

52:03

In the first episode of The Turing Podcast season 4, the hosts are joined by Cari Hyde-Vaamonde, a PhD candidate at Kings College London and visiting lecturer in law. The episode discusses the field of Algorithmic Justice and Cari's work modelling the decision making process of judges.By The Alan Turing Institute

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Will Plutocrats be the first to mine in space? Not really artificial, not especially intelligent and ’On that farm he had robots, with a bot bot here and a bot bot there.’ 33:04

2y ago33:04

33:04

This week Smera and Jonah go outer space to discuss mineral sourcing, they explore how the terms we use to describe machine learning, need to be properly understood and they ask if AI in agriculture is a muddy step in the right direction. Too long didn't read, brought to you by The Alan Turing Institute, the UK's national institute for data science…

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Hot Chips, Exploitation in AI and ’Is it a bird, is it a plane? No it’s Supercomputer!’ 34:43

2y ago34:43

34:43

This week Smera explains to Jonah some of the intricacies of the global 'Chip War'. They explore claims of labour exploitation in the name of AI safety, and discuss how many whales you can fit inside a supercomputer. Smera tells us how deepfakes are being used for good during Diwali and the team enjoy a brand new DJ GEF inspired remix of the intro …

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too long didn’t read trailer 0:37

2y ago0:37

0:37

Too long didn't read, brought to you by The Alan Turing Institute, the UK's national institute for data science and AI. The weekly podcast that reads the week's big AI stories so you don't have to.By The Alan Turing Institute

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The Summit of Safety, Classroom cheatbots and Ladybird subterfuge 30:19

2y ago30:19

30:19

This week Jonah asks Smera the real take-aways from the UK's AI Safety Summit have been, what are the risks, regs and ethics behind using large language models for homework and lesson planning and the technical secrets behind the new Beatles track. Too long didn't read, brought to you by The Alan Turing Institute, the UKs national institute for dat…

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Who’s doing what with my face? AI Safety Summit and Lost in Translation 18:24

2y ago18:24

18:24

Joining Smera this episode is Luca to discuss Google's new controversial face-tuning feature, a discussion on the up-coming AI Safety Summit happening in the UK and how ChatGPT isn't quite ready to take over the entire world yet. Too long didn't read, brought to you by The Alan Turing Institute, the national institute for data science and AI. The w…

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Dr eVTOL, Burnt Laps and Who’s got my face? 23:13

2y ago23:13

23:13

In this episode, Smera and Jonah talk flying cars, water usage in AI technologies and why you should think twice about engaging with face filter trends. Plus, more questionable dad-jokes from Jonah and we learn about Smera’s secret DJ backup plan. Sources Predictive Policing: https://www.propublica.org/article/machine-bias-risk-assessments-in-crimi…

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Disinformation, One Ring to Rule Them and Artificial IntelligDANCE 24:46

2y ago24:46

24:46

Too long didn't read, brought to you by The Alan Turing Institute, the national institute for data science and AI. The weekly podcast that reads the week's big AI stories so you don't have to. With new developments in artificial intelligence happening at lightning speed, it can be hard to keep up. That's where too long didn't read comes in. We know…

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How do we regulate AI? 53:59

2y ago53:59

53:59

Artificial Intelligence has transformed the way we interact with technology, from voice assistants to autonomous vehicles. As the development and implementation of AI continues to grow at pace, the question of regulation is absolutely key. Join Bea and Anneca as they discuss the ramifications of the EU's AI regulations framework with the Turing's R…

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Diagnosing Dementia with AI 27:28

2+ y ago27:28

27:28

Join Bea and Anneca as they discuss the potential and current AI tools being used around treating and diagnosing illnesses such as dementia, with Zoe Kourtzi. Zoe is Professor of Computational Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Cambridge. Her research aims to develop predictive models of neurodegenerative disease and mental health with tra…

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Making the world add up with Tim Harford 1:02:44

2+ y ago1:02:44

1:02:44

In this week’s Turing Podcast, Ed chats with Tim Harford about the themes from his 2020 book “How to Make the World Add Up”, which include thinking about the ways statistics and numbers are (mis)used in the media and what we can do about it. Tim is an economist and presenter of the BBC radio show “More or less”.…

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The Coffee Pod - Domenic DiFrancesco 12:52

2+ y ago12:52

12:52

Welcome to another episode of the Coffee Pod podcast! A short series about the Turing's AI for Science and Government fund, that gives you the chance to hear about the people behind the project. Each episode you’ll be listening to a different colleague, their background, career and most importantly… how they like their coffee. Joining Bea this week…

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The Coffee Pod - Tom Andersson 17:22

2+ y ago17:22

17:22

Welcome to another episode of the Coffee Pod Podcast! A short series about the Turing's AI for Science and Government fund, that gives you the chance to hear about the people behind the project. Each episode you’ll be listening to a different colleague, their background, career and most importantly… how they like their coffee. In this episode, Bea …

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The Coffee Pod - Fernando Benitez 17:17

2+ y ago17:17

17:17

Welcome to another Coffee Pod episode! A short series about the Turing's AI for Science and Government fund, that gives you the chance to hear about the people behind the project. Each episode you’ll be listening to a different colleague, their background, career and most importantly… how they like their coffee. In this episode, Bea is joined with …

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The Coffee Pod - Malvika Sharan 15:14

2+ y ago15:14

15:14

Welcome to another Coffee Pod episode! A short series about the Turing's AI for Science and Government fund, that gives you the chance to hear about the people behind the project. Each episode you’ll be listening to a different colleague, their background, career and most importantly… how they like their coffee. Today Bea is speaking to Malvika Sha…

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The Coffee Pod - Hussein Rappel 15:12

2+ y ago15:12

15:12

Welcome to the Coffee Pod! A short series about the Turing's AI for Science and Government fund, that gives you the chance to hear about the people behind the project. Each episode you’ll be listening to a different colleague, their background, career and most importantly… how they like their coffee. In this episode, Bea is speaking to Hussein Rapp…

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How to Speak Whale 51:26

2+ y ago51:26

51:26

Following Tom Mustill’s popular Turing Lecture at the Royal Institution, How to Speak Whale, Tom joins Bea and Jo to catch up on the latest advancements in communication between humans and animals. This lively edition of the Turing podcast covers a great variety of subjects, including some of Tom’s favourite (and surprising) whale facts, and whethe…

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The Coffee Pod - Ruoyun Hui 15:16

2+ y ago15:16

15:16

Welcome to the first Coffee Pod episode! A short series about the Turing's AI for Science and Government fund, that gives you the chance to hear about the people behind the project. Each episode you’ll be listening to a different colleague, their background, career and most importantly… how they like their coffee. Joining podcast host Bea this week…

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AI in the financial sector 1:06:09

2+ y ago1:06:09

1:06:09

With Dr Adrian Weller (Programme Director and Turing Fellow) and Kate Platonova (Group Chief Data Analytics Officer at HSBC), Ed Chalstrey discusses how AI is being used in financial services and what data is useful in banking today.By The Alan Turing Institute

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The Stats Gap 34:36

2+ y ago34:36

34:36

Join Ed and David as they speak to Ellen Pasternack, a PHD student in evolutionary biology at the University of Oxford. Ellen is a science writer for UnHerd and Works in Progress. In this episode, we’re going to chat about one of her most recent articles, "The Stats Gap", which explores the issues with statistical education for university scientist…

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How much can we limit the rising of the seas? 48:39

2+ y ago48:39

48:39

Join Aoife and Sally as they chat to Dr Tamsin Edwards about how she uses AI to predict rising sea levels, following her Turing Lecture at the Royal Institution. Tamsin is a climate scientist, specialising in the uncertainties of climate model predictions, particularly for ice sheets and glaciers. Within her research, she also uses information abou…

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Where next for self-driving vehicles? 34:40

2+ y ago34:40

34:40

Join Aoife and Torty as they chat with Professor Sarah Sharples about the current state of technology and AI around driverless vehicles. Sarah (chief scientific advisor for the department for transport) recently did a Turing lecture at the Royal Institution, discussing the topic. In this podcast, she’ll be answering a range of different questions f…

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Footballers on Twitter: What is fair game? 56:27

3y ago56:27

56:27

This week we are joined by Manchester United women's footballer Aoife Mannion, Author and CEO of Glitch Seyi Akiwowo and Turing Researcher Pica Johansson to discuss online abuse suffered by football players and other athletes online. The Turing recently partnered with OfCom, who comissioned a report in relation to its upcoming role as the UK’s Onli…

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Turing deployment at sea: identifying plankton in real time 47:35

3y ago47:35

47:35

In this episode, hosts Bea and Anneca are joined by Robert Blackwell, from CEFAS (Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science), who tells us, among many other things, how an algorithm to detect different species of plankton developed in two weeks during a Turing DSG ended up being deployed six months later on a ship.…

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Machine Learning for Armed Conflict Mediation 1:03:36

3y ago1:03:36

1:03:36

This week we welcome Dr Miguel Arana-Catania and Professor Rob Procter from the University of Warwick, along with Dr Felix-Anselm van Lier from Oxford University. The episode discusses their recent work in using machine learning to analyze large-scale peace dialogue transcripts from the war in Yemen, with the aim to assist conflict mediators.…

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Living with Machines 51:43

3y ago51:43

51:43

By The Alan Turing Institute

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Data Science for Social Good: Predicting air pollution in a post-COVID world? 55:50

3+ y ago55:50

55:50

In this episode Christina catches up with two of her former collaborators, Prithviraj Pramanik and Dr. Subhabrata Majumdar. The three of them worked as volunteers at Solve for Good (a platform to connect social good organizations with volunteer data scientists to solve socially beneficial challenges). The team discusses their work with UNICEF to bu…