Lorenzo Carta (University of Trieste) joins CareNet as a visiting PhD candidate working on AI in elderly care.

Lorenzo Carta investigates digital innovations, particularly Artificial Intelligence, in their multifaceted dimensions: from expectations and imaginaries to the design and governance of specific technologies. These topics are investigated through Science and Technology Studies (STS) approaches, combining theoretical reflections with ethnographic methodologies to understand how AI systems are imagined and how could reconfigure pre-existing practices, such as elderly care.

His current research project, conducted as part of his PhD, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Welfare: Processes and Implications of an Ongoing Change explores how digital predictive technologies are designed, anticipated, and potentially integrated into welfare services. The project specifically focuses on predictive models and wearable devices for fall risk prediction in elderly care. Using a mix of methodologies (including in-depth interviews, participant mapping, and document analysis) the research combines insights from Actor-Network Theory, Sociology of Expectations, and Socio-Gerontechnology.

His research stay with the CareNet group will be dedicated to further developing this project by linking the empirical analysis to key theoretical discussions within STS. During his visit he will also organize seminars on his research topics.

About him

Lorenzo Carta is a PhD student in Applied Data Science and Artificial Intelligence at the University of Trieste. He held both a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Philosophy from the University of Pisa. He obtained a Postgraduate Degree in Science Communication from SISSA (Trieste). His research focuses on AI technologies through the lens of STS and the governance of emerging technologies. He collaborates with SISSA Medialab and the Trieste Science+Fiction Festival on science communication initiatives.