Luciano Floridi

Luciano Floridi is an Italian-born philosopher and logician renowned as a foundational thinker in the philosophy of information and a leading authority on digital ethics. His work provides a unified framework for understanding the information revolution and its profound impact on reality, knowledge, and values. Floridi has held prestigious academic positions at institutions including the University of Oxford and currently serves as a professor at the University of Bologna.

Biography

Born in Rome, Floridi earned his first degree in philosophy from the University of Rome "La Sapienza" before completing his PhD at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom. His early academic career included research fellowships at the University of Oxford, where he later became a professor and served as the director of the Oxford Internet Institute. He has also held professorial chairs at the University of Hertfordshire and the University of Bari, and has been a visiting professor at numerous institutions including Harvard University and the Yale Law School. Floridi is a recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship and has advised organizations like the European Commission and Google on ethical issues in technology.

Philosophy of information

Floridi's philosophy of information establishes information as a fundamental concept for philosophical inquiry, alongside being, knowledge, and meaning. He argues that information and communications technology has brought about a "fourth revolution" in humanity's self-understanding, following the disruptions caused by Nicolaus Copernicus, Charles Darwin, and Sigmund Freud. Central to his framework is the concept of the "infosphere"—the informational environment constituted by all informational entities—and the process of "re-ontologization," whereby digital technologies create new kinds of being and interaction. His systematic analysis is detailed in major works like The Philosophy of Information, published by Oxford University Press.

Information ethics

Building upon his metaphysical framework, Floridi developed an ambitious macroethical theory known as information ethics. This approach extends the circle of ethical consideration beyond sentient life to all informational entities, constituting what he terms the "infosphere". The core principle is that being and information have intrinsic value, and ethical action involves minimizing entropy and promoting the flourishing of the infosphere. This perspective, which he contrasts with anthropocentric theories like utilitarianism and deontology, introduces the concept of "ontic trust", portraying ethical agents as stewards of the informational environment.

Digital ethics

Floridi's digital ethics applies his theoretical work to the concrete challenges posed by the digital age, including artificial intelligence, big data, and online identity. He has analyzed the ethical implications of algorithmic governance, the right to be forgotten, and the nature of digital warfare. Floridi chaired the European Commission's High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence, contributing to the drafting of the Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI. His work emphasizes the need for a "eudaimonic" design of technology that promotes human and societal flourishing within a well-managed infosphere.

Selected works

Floridi is a prolific author whose key monographs include The Philosophy of Information (2011), The Ethics of Information (2013), and The Fourth Revolution: How the Infosphere is Reshaping Human Reality (2014), all published by Oxford University Press. Other significant publications are Information: A Very Short Introduction (2010) in the Very Short Introductions series and the edited volume The Cambridge Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics (2010). His writings have been translated into numerous languages, including Chinese, Spanish, and Persian, influencing global discourse on technology and ethics. Category:Italian philosophers Category:Philosophers of technology Category:1964 births Category:Living people