Can Technology Solve the Problems it Creates?

Innovation is often framed as the solution to humanity's greatest challenges, yet new technologies rarely arrive without a cost of their own. In this talk, Armin Grunwald confronts one of the defining puzzles of our era: technological progress generates unintended consequences that demand still more innovation. This unending spiral has shaped the Anthropocene so far. Grunwald argues for a responsible path between blind faith that new technology will fix what old technology broke, and nostalgic longing for a pre-industrial world. Instead, he calls on science, engineering, politics, and society to jointly navigate this cycle toward a genuinely better Anthropocene.

Following the talk, the following scholars will respond to Grunwald’s thesis:

Mallory James · Lauren Keeler · Harro van Lente

Rob Melnick · Carl Mitcham · Clark Miller

Prof. Dr. Armin Grunwald is one of Germany's leading voices on the ethics and societal impact of technology. He directs the Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS) at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and, since 2002, has headed the Office of Technology Assessment at the German Bundestag (TAB). Since 2007 he has held the Chair of Philosophy and Ethics of Technology at KIT. Trained originally in physics, he later turned to philosophy, earning his habilitation at the University of Marburg. His research spans technology assessment, sustainability, and the ethics of emerging technologies.

Grunwald's Discussion paper and Responses from roundtable are freely available from the Journal of Responsible Innovation.