Gods and Robots: Myths and Ancient Dreams of Technology

Who first imagined robots? As early as Homer, Greek myths envisioned automated servants, self-moving devices, and AI—and grappled with ethical concerns about technology.

This talk explores how some of today’s most advanced innovations in robotics and artificial intelligence were foreshadowed in classical antiquity.

Adrienne Mayor is a research scholar in classics and the history of science at Stanford University. Her most recent book is Gods and Robots: Myths, Machines, and Ancient Dreams of Technology; other books include The First Fossil Hunters, The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women; and a biography of Mithradates, The Poison King (National Book Award finalist).

Co-sponsored by the Newhouse Center for the Humanities, the Department of Classical Studies, and the Department of Computer Science.