News Story

Computer Séance: A new research podcast from KMI researchers explores AI through the lens of popular culture

Monday 29 Jun 2026

As artificial intelligence reshapes almost every aspect of contemporary life, a new podcast from KMI researchers called Computer Séance offers a timely and engaging space to think critically about what these technologies mean.

Hosted by Justin (Research Fellow), Ben (Visiting Scholar, University of Brighton) and Tracie (Senior Research Fellow), the podcast queerly combines media criticism, cultural theory, and technological curiosity to examine how films, television, literature and other works of popular culture anticipate or challenge the realities of AI today.

Rather than focusing solely on the technical aspects of artificial intelligence, each episode uses a familiar cultural text as a starting point for wider conversations about digital identities, automation, surveillance, virtual worlds and the increasingly blurred boundaries between humans and machines. The result is an accessible discussion that combines academic curiosity and nostalgic obsession.

For those interested in digital culture, media studies, creative practice or the social implications of emerging technologies, Computer Séance demonstrates how fiction can help us understand the futures we are already beginning to inhabit.

The podcast is available on all streaming platforms and YouTube – check it out here: https://linktr.ee/computerseance

Computer Séance Contributors:

Hosts: Dr T Farrell Dr RJ Hunt, Dr RB Sweeting
Producer: Cat McShane
Original Music: Rosa Brook
Sound Mixing: Dan Bolger
Graphic Design: Dr Retno Larasati