BUILD at the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology: Rethinking Ageing and AI in Long-Term Care

From 6–11 July 2025, the city of Rabat, Morocco, hosts the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology, a major international gathering organised by the International Sociological Association. Under the theme Knowing Justice in the Anthropocene, the forum brings together researchers and practitioners from across the world to examine how social sciences can respond to global transformations.

As part of this important event, BUILD will be represented in the session “Artificial Intelligence: Ethical, Legal and Societal Implications (Part II)” with a contribution exploring the intersection of ageing, care, and AI technologies.

Titled “Imagining ageing in AI-based technologies for long-term care: what technology for whom?”, the presentation is co-authored by Victoria Kontrus and Roger von Laufenberg. It critically examines how AI-based technologies are framed as “solutions” to problems of ageing, and how these so-called problems are constructed in the first place. Drawing on insights from Austria, the presentation questions the practical relevance and beneficiaries of these technologies in real-world care settings, highlighting a gap between intended users and actual impact.

📍 The session took place on Tuesday, 8 July from 11:00 to 12:45 (local time).

This contribution reflects BUILD’s ongoing commitment to fostering critical perspectives on AI and care, challenging assumptions and opening up new conversations around inclusion, ethics, and social relevance in technological innovation.