Globally-renowned digital sociologist receives $1M Future Fellowship for research into home helper robots

Professor Strengers’ research will investigate the opportunities and risks associated with the growing emergence of home helper robots, ranging from their abilities to perform household tasks to offering companionship.

Notably the research will explore the “cute” aspect of emerging home helper robots and its societal implications.

‘I’m fascinated by our evolving relationships with human-like AI and what that means for human practices involving care, intimacy and social interaction. This Fellowship is an honour to receive and a recognition that the Australian government understands the opportunities and risks posed by emerging home robots and anthropomorphised AI,’ said Professor Strengers.

This research builds on her seminal work ‘The Smart Wife’, the 2020 book Professor Strengers co-authored with Dr Jenny Kennedy, which focuses on the controversial development of feminised digital voice assistants and their role in perpetuating dangerous gendered stereotypes.

Her Fellowship will produce greater insights into the role of anthropomorphised robots in our lives, and inform future robot design and policy to support societal wellbeing, consumer interests and harmonious human-robot relationships.

‘Professor Strengers’ work tackles the fundamental question: how can we harness emerging technologies to ensure a safe and prosperous future? By exploring ethical implications and collaboration across disciplines, her research reminds us that safeguarding our future is a collective effort and a balance of  the technical with the human,’ said Professor Ann Nicholson, Dean of Monash Faculty of Information Technology.

World-renowned for her interdisciplinary work in digital sociology, Professor Strengers leads a significant Australian collaborative energy forecasting initiative investigating the interplay between evolving digital lifestyle trends and their impact on future household electricity demands.

She has garnered an esteemed reputation for her many published works across sociology, geography, human-computer interaction design, media and communications studies, and science and technology studies, including her book ‘Smart Energy Technologies in Everyday Life’.

Always future focused, Professor Strengers passionately advocates for equity in the workplace as the Faculty’s inaugural Associate Dean (Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion). She also co-designed the Superbots program, a pioneering initiative led by Monash Tech School that gets  young girls hands-on in the world of AI agents, fostering a more inclusive and diverse future in technology.

The ARC Future Fellowship scheme aims to support research tackling the most important challenges facing Australia at present, based on the nine priority areas identified by the Australian Government.

‘With this Fellowship, our Emerging Technologies Research Lab now houses Fellows from three prestigious ARC Discovery Program schemes – a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award, a Future Fellow and an Australian Laureate Fellowship. This demonstrates the calibre of researchers we have within the Faculty and their dedication to our vision and the broader University’s commitment to addressing the challenges of the age,’ said Professor Nicholson.