Susan Schneider, Ph.D.

Susan Schneider, Ph.D., is the William F. Dietrich Professor of Philosophy at Florida Atlantic University. Schneider studies the nature of the mind, with an interest in emerging technologies and how that will shape the future of humanity.

In collaboration with FAU's Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, Schneider is leading the university's initiative on the "Future of the Mind" to investigate the scientific and social impact of emerging 21st century technologies, such as artificial intelligence, with an emphasis on classic philosophical approaches.

Prior to coming to FAU, Schneider held a number of distinguished positions. She was the NASA-Baruch Blumberg Chair at the Library of Congress and NASA; the Distinguished Scholar Chair at the Library of Congress; and the director of the AI, Mind and Society (AIMS) Group at the University of Connecticut, where she was also professor of philosophy and cognitive science.

Schneider writes about the nature of the self and mind, especially from the vantage point of philosophy, AI, cognitive science and astrobiology. Within philosophy, she has explored the computational nature of the brain in her academic book, "The Language of Thought: A New Direction." More recently, she defended an anti-materialist position about the fundamental nature of the mind. In her new book, "Artificial You: AI and the Future of the Mind," she brings these topics together in an accessible way, discussing the philosophical implications of AI and, in particular, the enterprise of "mind design."

Schneider's work in philosophy of AI has taken her to Washington, D.C., where she often meets with members of Congress and gives presentations on AI and on topics such as data privacy, algorithmic bias, technological unemployment, autonomous weapons, and more.

Schneider appears frequently on television shows on PBS and The History Channel, as well as providing keynote addresses at AI ethics conferences, at universities such as Harvard and Cambridge. She also writes opinion pieces for The New York Times, Scientific American, and the Financial Times. Her work has been widely discussed in the media, at venues like The New York Times, Science, Big Think, Nautilus, Discover, and Smithsonian.

She is currently working on a new book on the shape of intelligent systems, to be published by W.W. Norton in the United States and by Oxford University Press in the United Kingdom. Schneider received a Ph.D. in philosophy from Rutgers University.