From the Archive: How AI is helping - and harming - animals

This podcast was originally published in September 2025 and is being republished as part of our Summer archive series of LSE's Public Lectures and Events.

Learn more about the Jeremy Coller Centre for Animal Sentience, a new LSE initiative committed to making sure technological change works for - rather than against - the interests of other species.

Would you trust a device that claimed to translate your dog or cat's emotions into English? Would you be OK with completely automated, human-free farming? What if you had a driverless car that was indifferent to hitting birds and foxes?

AI is transforming the lives of animals at speed, but these huge impacts are going unnoticed and unregulated. Some of the changes could transform our relationships with our fellow creatures for the better, whereas others could make existing animal welfare problems much worse and even more deeply entrenched. How can we curb the risks and take the opportunities?