Free
External
Until recently experts believed that creative jobs and businesses would be among the least vulnerable to AI and robotisation. However, in recent years these views have changed with the acceleration of Generative AI tools, which are already used as a low-cost substitute for creator labour previously done by humans. Undoubtedly, AI systems not only have made an impact on human creativity but have gone as far as generating new and original content, prompting some scholars to describe machine-based generative outputs as ‘artificial creativity’ (Moruzzi, 2021; Runco, 2023a, 2023b).
There are currently two discourses: on the one hand, there are enthusiasts who stress that the adoption and use of AI as a tool brings increased potential for creative tasks, expanding the reach and speed of search beyond the localised imagination of people, and ultimately resulting in augmented human talent and creativity. Digitisation of creative content has made professionals more productive and saved thousands of hours of tedious “grunt work” in activities like animation, where AI can substitute for repetitive rendering, freeing workers attention for higher-level and potentially more creative tasks.
Against this promise and opportunity sceptics report that work is already being lost, particularly in the more precarious freelance sector. Moreover, AI models depend on creative content produced by humans, which is exploited without regard for the human sources and their remuneration, since Intellectual Property enforcement is difficult with online content. From this respect, there are concerns that AI systems will eventually diminish human creativity and jeopardise the future of jobs, businesses and entire industries, including education institutions serving those industries.
This event will bring together these two contrasting perspectives to consider both sides and debate the opportunities and threats of AI for creativity.
Event Provider:
Joint SIG Event from the BAM Creative and Cultural Industries and BAM Innovation Special Interest Groups
Facilitators:
Professor Jonathan Sapsed
Chair – Professor Jonathan Sapsed, Newcastle University. [email protected]
Dr Areti Gkypali
Representative for capacity building for ECRs – Dr Areti Gkypali, Athens University of Economic and Business. [email protected]
Programme
Provisional Programme
Organised jointly between the BAM Special Interest Groups of Innovation and Creative and Cultural Industries, our event will feature:
- Paper sessions with discussants (potentially leading to a Special Issue in a related journal (CABS 3* / 4*))
- A debate on the (future) impacts of AI on creativity with leading academic and practitioner speakers
- An acclaimed artist showcasing and reflecting on their AI-augmented creations
- Social and networking opportunities with two of BAM’s warmest communities!
Day 1:
| Timing | Item | Location |
| 13:00 - 13:30 | Welcome reception | Future space |
| 13.30 - 14.00 |
Opening speech from |
LDN104 |
| 14:00 - 14:45 | Keynote: Rachael Maclean | LDN104 |
| 14:45 - 15:00 | Coffee/Tea | Future Space |
| 15:00 - 16:30 |
Debate on the motion: |
LDN104 Will be recorded |
Day 2:
| Timing | Item | Location |
| 09:00 - 09:30 | Morning coffee and tea | Future Space |
| 09:30 - 11:00 | Session 1: Paper session 1 | LDN104 |
| 11:00 - 11:15 | Tea/coffee break | Future Space / LDN104 |
| 11:15 - 12:45 | Session 2: Developmental session | LDN013 / LDN014 |
| 12:45 - 13:30 | Lunch + Posters | Future Space |
| 13:30 - 15:00 | Session 3: Paper session 2 | LDN104 |
| 15:00 - 15:15 | Closing remarks | LDN104 |
| 15:15 - … | Open invitation to Lock-Inn Pub | Lock-Inn Pub (Canal Side, 3 min. walk) |
Keynote Speakers
Keynote Speakers
Rachel Maclean
Rachel Maclean is an established artist and filmmaker based in Glasgow whose films have been shown widely in galleries, museums, film festivals, and on television. She has screened work at numerous festivals in the UK and internationally, such as Rotterdam International, Fantasia and BFI London Film Festival.
She has received significant acclaim with solo shows at Tate Britain and The National Gallery, London, and she represented Scotland at the 2017 Venice Biennale with her film Spite Your Face. Her work A Whole New World (2014) won the prestigious Margaret Tate Award in 2013.
She has twice been shortlisted for the Jarman Award and achieved widespread critical praise for Feed Me at the British Art Show in 2016. She has also worked on several TV commissions for BBC1 and Channel 4.
Professor Jonathan Sapsed
Chair – Professor Jonathan Sapsed, Newcastle University. [email protected]
Debate Speakers
Dr. Sarah Otner
Dr. Sarah Otner is an Associate Professor of Innovation Management at SPRU, within the University of Sussex Business School. Most recently, she was a British Academy Innovation Fellow, working in partnership with The Fragrance Foundation UK.
Previously, Sarah was a Senior Lecturer in Organizational Behavior at Kingston Business School; a Junior Research Fellow in the Department of Management & Entrepreneurship at Imperial College Business School and an Affiliate Fellow of the Data Science Institute at Imperial College London; and a Visiting Lecturer at ESMT Berlin.
She is also an alumna and current affiliate of the Oxford University Centre for Corporate Reputation at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. She earned a Ph.D. in Management (Organisational Behaviour) and an MSc.Res. in Organisational & Social Psychology from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and an A.B. (cum laude) in Psychology from Harvard College.
Bart Vanneste
Bart Vanneste is an Associate Professor in the Strategy & Entrepreneurship group of the UCL School of Management. Bart’s research focuses on artificial intelligence and corporate strategy. He has published widely including a book titled Corporate Strategy: Tools for Analysis and Decision-Making and in prestigious journals such as Academy of Management Review, Organization Science, Strategic Management Journal, and Strategy Science.
He is the Programme Director of the AI for Business executive education programme at the UCL School of Management. He was awarded the Management Best Teacher Award by UCL School of Management. He obtained a Ph.D. in Strategic & International Management from the London Business School and an M.Sc. in Data Science & Machine Learning from UCL, and was on the faculty of INSEAD.
Professor Deborah Roberts
Deborah Roberts is a Professor of Marketing and Innovation at York University. Prior to academia she held a number of senior industry appointments within blue-chip organizations and consulting positions bringing a wealth of experience to her research.
Her research explores the intersection of marketing and innovation management, focusing on areas such as open and user-driven innovation, co-creation of products, market learning, social media marketing, and the evolving relationship between marketing theory and practice. Recently, has explored how Artificial Intelligence is impacting the innovation process moving beyond the hype to examine what is actually happening in practice. This work may be found in Roberts, D. L and Candi, M, ( 2024), Technovation136, 103081.
Her work has also been published in leading international journals, including the Journal of Product Innovation Management, MIT Sloan Management Review, European Journal of Marketing, R&D Management, British Journal of Management, and Technovation
Deborah is a respected reviewer for several prominent academic journals, including the British Journal of Management, R&D Management, Journal of Marketing Management, International Journal of Market Research, California Management Review, Journal of Product Innovation Management, and European Journal of Marketing.
She serves on the Scientific Committee for the International Product Development Conference, part of the European Institute for Advanced Studies in Management (EIASM) in Brussels. In this role, she contributes to governance, planning, doctoral modules, thought leadership, and the development of junior academics globally.
Deborah is also a non-Trustee expert advisor for RADMA, a UK charity supporting R&D management research, where she evaluates applications for postgraduate student research funding. Additionally, she judges the Innovation category for the Make UK awards, a prestigious program connecting academia and industry to celebrate manufacturers' contributions to society.
She has cultivated international research collaborations with leading institutions in the US and Europe, including McGill University's Desautels Faculty of Management (Montreal), Northeastern University's D'Amore-McKim School of Business (Boston), where she has been a visiting Professor , and RWTH Aachen University School of Business and Economics in Germany.
Dr Suran Goonatilake OBE
Dr Suran Goonatilake OBE is a Visiting Professor at the UCL Centre for Artificial Intelligence, one of the leading global centres for AI research. As a PhD student at UCL, Suran co-founded an AI company called Searchspace that spots ‘patterns’ of money-laundering and insider-dealing at banks and stock exchanges (acquired by Warburg Pincus).
He has co-edited two books, ‘Intelligent Systems for Finance and Business’ and ‘Intelligent Hybrid Systems’, both published by John Wiley, and co-founded the Centre for Fashion Enterprise, an initiative that financed and nurtured London-based fashion designers including Erdem and JW Anderson. Suran also produced a romantic comedy with Tom Hardy, Ewan McGregor et al which opened in 50 UK cinemas, and sold to 20 countries and Luxury Unveiled, a global TV series – transmitted in 50 countries – on luxury brands featuring Chanel, Cartier, Tiffany, Dunhill and others.
Suran has been featured in Ad Age’s Creativity 50 and was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2005.
Benefits of Attendance
Hearing specialist experts on the topic
Presenting research to a specialist audience
Support for PhD students working in the area
Knowledge exchange with practitioners
Networking with academics and practitioners
Support for development to a specialist issue of a well ranked CABS journal
Venue
Our conference will be held at Loughborough University London,
located within the vibrant Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Stratford. Nestled within Here East - a proud legacy of the 2012 Olympics - it thrives as a dynamic hub for innovation, collaboration, and creativity.
Dedicated exclusively to postgraduate and doctoral education Loughborough University London fosters an interdisciplinary learning environment through five specialised institutes: Creative Futures, Digital Technologies, Diplomacy and International Affairs, International Management and Entrepreneurship, and Sport Business.
The campus has excellent transport links to London’s major airports, rail stations, and the central London and is located next to the trendy East London district of Hackney.
There is a free shuttle bus service available that connects our campus at Here East to Stratford International and Stratford Station. For more information, please visit https://www.lborolondon.ac.uk/about/find-us/
Loughborough University London, Here East.
3 Lesney Avenue
The Broadcast Centre
Here East
Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
London
E20 3BS
Event Fees
BAM Member - £50
BAM Student - £25
BAM Non-Member - £100
If you are booking multiple paid events as a Non-Member, it may be cheaper for you to purchase a BAM Membership as nearly all BAM Events are free or at a discounted rate for Members.
For more information, please visit BAM Membership
Key Dates:
Deadline for submission of the full paper (for presenters): 4th April 2025
Registration deadline: 9th April 2025
Payment and Cancellation Policy
Payment for the event must be received before the start date of the event concerned. Access will not be permitted to the event if full payment has not been received.
Cancellations
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Cancellations received within 14 days of booking your place on the event will receive a full refund.
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Cancellations received after the 14-day cancellation period and later than 14 days before the start date of the event will not be eligible for a refund.
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Although we endeavour to run all events as advertised, BAM reserves the right to cancel any event if, for example, there are not enough people to justify running the event or if other significant unforeseen circumstances arise. Please be aware that delegates are always responsible for ensuring their own travel and accommodation against cancellation, and the British Academy of Management is not able to reimburse anyone for these under any circumstances.
To cancel a booking a cancellation request must be submitted via your BAM Account, to do this:
- Go to your BAM Account
- Click 'My Events'
- Under 'Upcoming Events' will be the booking, please click Cancel Booking
- Follow the steps and complete the request
