Program

Next Seminar

Speaker: Prof. Dr. Anastasia Sergeeva
(Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam)
Seminar Title: "Behind the Scenes of Human-Centered Automation: The Work and Struggles of Automation Advisors"
Date, Time: July 14, 2026, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Location: Ludwigstr. 28 VG, Room 211b

Abstract: Automation has become a central concern across disciplines, yet we know surprisingly little about how it is accomplished in practice. Existing accounts often treat automation as a coherent outcome and emphasize keeping humans “in the loop,” offering limited insight into the practices enacted under the “human-centered” automation label. We examine this omission through an ethnographic study of automation advisors in robotic dairy farming. We find that advisors navigate overlapping automation domains: managing the situated ecology in which automation is embedded, engaging with layered technological architectures, and coping with role indeterminacy following the shift to automation-as-a-service. We contribute by foregrounding the practical work through which automation is accomplished. Our findings also decenter the human in “human-in-the-loop” narratives, shifting attention to practices in which different humans, technological layers and species (e.g., animals) are progressively brought together and reconfigured in the ongoing accomplishment of automation.

Prof. Dr. Robert Zeithammer (University of California, USA)
"tbd"

17.09.2026, tbd
Ludwigstr. 28 VG, Room 211b

Abstract:
tbd

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