The Future Civilizations Conference

This one-day conference brings together faculty, students, and researchers to explore how AI, robotics, and autonomous systems may reshape the foundations of human civilization, from the design of future cities and food systems to human psychology, social life, and even the possibility of off-world settlements.
We use the idea of the “next human city” as a lens to explore how emerging technologies will transform the structures, relationships, and purposes that define civilization.

Panels

Designing the Autonomous City How AI, robotics, and autonomous systems will transform the built environment, including architecture, mobility, urban planning, infrastructure, and the experience of public space.

Human Psychology, Purpose, and Social Life in an AI-Shaped World How human identity, belonging, creativity, and emotional life might evolve when everyday life is deeply integrated with autonomous agents.

Sustainability, Agriculture, and the Future of Feeding Civilizations How AI-driven agriculture, resource distribution, and environmental technologies will sustain future cities and human populations.

Frontier Cities: Building Civilizations Beyond Earth A speculative but serious exploration of how these principles extend to off-world environments such as Mars, and how AI will be essential to building entirely new forms of settlement.

Live Demonstrations

Fashion Robotics — Interactive robotic garments exploring wearable technology and human-machine expression
Automation and Robotics Laboratory — Spyder Bot, a legged agricultural robot for autonomous sensing in future food systems
Machine Poetics — An experiential work examining human-AI intimacy and coexistence

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Cornell Future Civilizations Society