Giulio Tononi

Sophisticated cognitive abilities do not necessarily imply consciousness. Drawing on integrated information theory, this presentation examines why computation alone may be insufficient for conscious experience and what properties a physical system must possess to support it. It develops the argument that artificial intelligence can simulate conscious behavior without possessing subjective experience and considers the implications for how consciousness in artificial systems could be defined, tested, or recognized.

Giulio Tononi, MD, PhD, is a neuroscientist and psychiatrist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he directs the Wisconsin Institute for Sleep and Consciousness. He is best known for developing integrated information theory, an influential framework for understanding the nature and physical basis of consciousness.