AI and Robotics: A Confluences Action Dialogue
Feb 11, 2026 — 12 p.m. to 1:15 p.m.
On Wednesday, February 11, 2026, from 12:00 PM to 1:15 PM ET, the Institute for Science, Society and Policy (ISSP) is hosting the latest in its series of Action Dialogues addressing grand challenges at the science, society and policy interface.
The Dialogue will undertake a timely examination of current issues in AI and robotics in anticipation of a revamped Canadian National AI Strategy. The conversation will focus on:
- The National AI Strategy efforts to date in the context of the federal government’s larger AI policy framework;
- The challenges/opportunities of engaging university students in national AI policymaking;
- The stakes of AI policymaking for Canada in the current geopolitical reality.
The featured speaker will be Dr. Jason Millar, Canada Research Chair in Ethical Engineering of Robotics and AI (and lead of the ISSP’s Research Cluster on Robotics and AI). Discussants will include Ms. Talia Cameron, PhD candidate in the Canadian Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Ethical Design Lab (CRAiEDL).
About the Event
The event on February 11 is part of the ISSP’s Grand Challenge Action Dialogue series, which convenes policymakers, researchers and thought leaders in a variety of sectors to expand mobilization of knowledge on grand challenges at the science-society-policy interface. The Dialogues are one element of a broader suite of activities supporting the ISSP’s flagship collaborative initiative Confluences: Navigating where science, society and policy come together in Canada.
Confluences emerges from the Institute’s Strategic Plan 2021-2026, which sets the ambitious vision of helping Canada transform decision-making to meet the grand challenges of our time. Our research, teaching and outreach focus on three key thematic areas underpinning our vision: building public trust in expertise and expert-based decision-making; developing co-production of policies among academic, government, industry, Indigenous and civil society members; and weaving together technological and social innovations.
Dr. Jason Millar
Speaker
Dr. Jason Millar is the Canada Research Chair in the Ethical Engineering of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, a Core Member of the ISSP and lead of its research cluster on Robotics and AI, a Faculty member at the Centre for Law, Technology and Society and an Associate Professor in the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Ottawa, with cross appointment to the Department of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts.
Dr. Jason Millar researches the ethical engineering of robotics and artificial intelligence, focusing on empowering engineers to integrate ethical thinking into their daily engineering workflow. Leading the Canadian Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Ethical Design Lab (CRAiEDL), Dr. Millar’s work focuses primarily on the ethics, policy and engineering of automated vehicles, artificial intelligence, healthcare robotics, and social and military robotics.
Dr. Millar has a degree in engineering physics and worked for several years as an engineer before turning his full-time attention to issues in philosophy and applied ethics. He has provided expert testimony at the United Nations and the Senate of Canada on the ethics of highly automated military robots. He consults internationally on policy and ethical engineering issues in emerging autonomous vehicle technology. His work is regularly featured in the media, including articles in publications such as WIRED and The Guardian and interviews with the BBC, CBC and NPR.
Talia Cameron
Discussant
Talia Cameron is a PhD Candidate in Philosophy at the University of Ottawa researching AI and environmental ethics. Her current work examines the role of AI in shaping environmentally consequential behaviours and how philosophy can inform responsible AI policy.
Talia has completed three work terms with the federal government at the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, where she contributed to the development of internal AI policies and trainings. Most recently, she collaborated with subject matter experts in information management (IM) to conduct a revision of the Office’s IM policy suite. In her role as a researcher at CRAiEDL, Talia leads the lab’s policy initiatives. These collaborative projects have included providing feedback to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) on updates to the Directive on Automated Decision-Making and, most recently, responding to Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (ISED) Canada’s “National Sprint” consultation on Canada’s revised AI Strategy.