International Digital Futures Network holds summer symposium at Edinburgh University

Audience members at the IDFN symposium in Edinburgh

Steven Connor addresses the audience at the IDFN symposium

1 July 2025

The International Digital Futures Network is a group of leading institutes from around the world which is coordinated by BDFI at its hub. For its third annual general meeting, representatives travelled to Edinburgh for a lively symposium and networking event.

Over 150 digital specialists and delegates attended the IDFN summer symposium at Edinburgh Futures Institute last month.

The two-day event began with a steering group meeting on the first day, followed by an exciting day of discussion about the AI revolution.

Delegates included colleagues from other digital futures institutes, academics from universities from all across the globes and leading industry representatives.

The discussions covered a variety of topics including:

Evolution vs Revolution: How did we get here with AI?

The 8 Foundational Principals for Genuinely Intelligent and Useful AI

Generative AI: Distinguishing Hype from Hallelujah

Following an introduction from Marion Thain, director of Edinburgh Futures Institute, speakers included: Jane Hillston, professor of Quantative Modelling at University of Edinburgh; Marcus Weldon, former President of Bell Labs and the CTO of Alcatel-Lucent, and Nokia Corporations; and Peter Flach, professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Bristol.

Digital futures experts gave responses to the topics being debated. These came from Steven Connor, director of research at the Digital Futures Institute at King’s College London; Sandra Wooley, deputy director of the Digital Society Institute at Keele University; and Sanja Milivojevic, associate professor at BDFI.

Alongside the talks and panel discussions, the two-day event allowed for networking and collaboration as well as a tour of the Edinburgh Futures Institute.

The IDFN was established in 2023 with a mission to connect new global interdisciplinary institutes to expand and foster research capacity across institutions, sectors and geographical borders.

Daniel Neyland, BDFI academic co-director and chair of the IDFN, said: “It was really valuable to meet with our colleagues from other futures institutes. With such a changing landscape it’s clear how much value there is in collaborating with others in the same field, to share best practice and inspire future ambitions.

“A big thank you to our colleagues at the Edinburgh Futures Institute for hosting us this year.

“We are always open to new members – please get in touch if you would like to join.”

Further information

The IDFN is continuing to grow and collaborate across its members. You can read more about the IDFN, including how to join, on our website.