Curriculum Vitae

Computer Scientist · AI, Social Computing & Human Agency
Assistant Professor, University of Ljubljana
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Email · Google Scholar · ORCID · LinkedIn

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Profile

Computer scientist working in social computing, computational social science, AI ethics and human-centred AI. I study LLM moral judgment, cognition, artificial companionship and recommender systems, and develop adaptive, efficient and privacy-preserving AI for edge, mobile and health applications.

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Current academic roles

Assistant Professor

University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Computer and Information Science · 2022–present

Research and teaching in AI systems, mobile and edge computing, context-aware systems and responsible AI. Supervision of student research across technical and interdisciplinary AI topics.

Researcher / Centre member

University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Theology · Centre for Human-Centred Artificial Intelligence and the Ethics of New Technologies · 2022–present

Interdisciplinary research on AI ethics, value alignment, human dignity, moral formation, relationality, digital anthropology and the social consequences of emerging technologies.

John Paul II Postdoctoral Fellow (PASS–FASS)

Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum), Rome / Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences collaboration · Oct 2026–Jun 2027

Current fellowship on artificial companionship, agentic AI and the crisis of human relation, within a programme on agentic AI, virtual worlds and relational social science.

Adjunct Research Professor

Babeș-Bolyai University, Romania · 2022–present

Additional academic affiliation and collaboration in computer science / intelligent systems.

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Research leadership

Moral Red Lines — Catholic Moral Discernment and Red Lines in the Race Toward AGI

Principal Investigator · Future of Life Institute Religions Initiative · 2026–2027

Research on human control, dignity, responsibility and limits on delegating decisions to advanced AI, informed by Catholic moral thought.

Theology and Digitalization: Anthropological and Ethical Challenges — J6-60105

Institutional Principal Investigator for UL FRI · Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency · 2025–2027

Interdisciplinary work across theology, philosophy, ethics, psychology and computer science on identity, embodiment, empathy, relationality, vulnerability, spirituality and moral agency in digital environments.

CARDIO-FL — Context-Aware Cardiac Monitoring with On-Device AI and Federated Learning

Project Lead and Lead Partner · ENFIELD Innovation Scheme (European Union) · 2026

Privacy-preserving adaptive cardiac monitoring combining wearable ECG, smartphone PPG, context-aware on-device inference and federated learning.

AgriAdapt — Energy-Efficient Agriculture Using UAVs and Real-Time Neural Network Adaptation

Principal Investigator · SMART4ALL (European Union) · 2023

Adaptive and energy-efficient AI for UAV-based real-time precision-agriculture sensing.

EQUAL-AI — STEM Skills for Inclusive & Industrial AI Adoption

Institutional Principal Investigator for UL FRI · expected late 2026–2028

Upcoming. Erasmus+ Alliances for Innovation project proposal developing European STEM Skills Foundries for applied, responsible and inclusive AI.

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Selected publications — ethics, alignment & human-centred AI

• Love as Moral Telos: A Love-Based Ethical Framework for Artificial Intelligence. Journal of Media Ethics, 2026. DOI: 10.1080/23736992.2026.2699087.
• Forgetting how to say “Thou”: artificial intelligence and the crisis of relation. AI and Ethics 6, article 361, 2026. DOI: 10.1007/s43681-026-01225-w.
• Agreement Is Not Alignment: Divergent Moral Grounds in Human and LLM Ethical Judgments. AI Transparency Journal 1(1), 124–132, 2026. Presented at the AI Transparency Conference (AITC) 2026, Nuremberg, Germany.
• A Scoping Review of the Negative Effects of Digital Technology on Cognition. with U. Žnidarič and E. Štrumbelj, Computers in Human Behavior Reports 24, article 101326, 2026. DOI: 10.1016/j.chbr.2026.101326.
• Beyond Algorethics: Addressing the Ethical and Anthropological Challenges of AI Recommender Systems. Journal of Media Ethics, 2025. DOI: 10.1080/23736992.2025.2584435.
• Forming hearts and minds: challenges and renewal in catholic education in the age of AI. International Studies in Catholic Education, 2025. DOI: 10.1080/19422539.2025.2576899.
• Generative AI and childhood education: lessons from the smartphone generation. AI & Society 40, 4295–4297, 2025. DOI: 10.1007/s00146-025-02196-y.
• Upholding Human Dignity in AI: Advocating Moral Reasoning over Consensus Ethics for Value Alignment. Philosophical Problems in Science 77, 25–39, 2024. DOI: 10.59203/zfn.77.707.
• Analyzing the Anthropological Implications of Artificial Intelligence through the Theology of Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI. Journal of Moral Theology 13(2), 114–135, 2024. DOI: 10.55476/001c.121945.
• Escaping Chronos: The Metaverse as a Surrogate for Aeon. Theology and Science 22(3), 557–565, 2024.

Selected publications — technical AI & intelligent systems

• Large Language Models for OCR in Cultural Heritage: A Comparative Study on Slovene Folkloristic Texts. International Journal on Document Analysis and Recognition, 2026.
• Privacy-Preserving Adaptive Arrhythmia Monitoring with Wearable ECG, Smartphone PPG, and Federated On-Device Learning. Frontiers in Digital Health, 2026.
• RADLER: Context-Aware Slimmable Model Selection for Energy-Efficient Real-Time UAV Weed Detection. IEEE Access 14, 2026.
• Deployment-Aware NAS for Lightweight UAV Object Detectors in Precision Agriculture Crop Monitoring. AgriEngineering 8(2), 2026.
• SqueezeSlimU-Net: An Adaptive and Efficient Segmentation Architecture for Real-Time UAV Weed Detection. IEEE JSTARS 18, 2025.
• Mobiprox: Supporting Dynamic Approximate Computing on Mobiles. IEEE Internet of Things Journal 11(9), 2024.
• Context-aware adaptation of mobile video decoding resolution. Multimedia Tools and Applications 82(12), 2023.

For the complete and continuously updated record, see Google Scholar.

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Selected invited talks and public engagement

2026

• The Efficiency–Atrophy Paradox: Empirical Findings on Negative Effects of AI Use on Cognition, workshop, Freiburg, 26 September 2026.
• Digital Media and Children's Development — Classification and Interactive Illustration of Mechanisms, with Paula Bleckmann, ECHT DABEI anniversary conference, Freiburg, 25 September 2026.
• Portorož Youth Health Forum 2026, invited expert, Portorož, 21 September 2026.
• HERMMES Ambassador Training, lecturer, European 15-month programme beginning September 2026.
• Aligning Large Language Models with Human Moral Judgment, From Virtual to Virtue, Ljubljana, June 2026.
• Agreement Is Not Alignment, AI Transparency Conference 2026, Nuremberg, June 2026.
• The Impact of AI on Cognition and Emotion, University of Rome Tor Vergata, April 2026.
• What We Know Empirically About the Effects of AI on Human Emotion, Memory, Cognition, and Sensory-Affective Experience, Future Foundation / WU Vienna, April 2026.
• EUTOPIA Health Day digital-wellbeing roundtable, University of Ljubljana, March 2026.

2025

• Challenges of Catechetical and Educational Work in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, University of Ljubljana Faculty of Theology.
• From Echo Chambers to Emotional Crutches: The New Seduction of AI and the Decline of Human Relationality, BCE 2025, Ljubljana.
• Generative AI and Human Creativity, Speculum Artium.
• How the Digital Revolution Challenges Our Humanity, Oton Župančič Library, Ljubljana.

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Education

PhD, Electronics and Telecommunications

Transilvania University of Brașov, Romania · 2015
Research in reconfigurable computing, FPGA systems and dynamic partial reconfiguration.

MSc, Embedded Systems

Transilvania University of Brașov, Romania · 2011

BSc, Applied Electronics

Transilvania University of Brașov, Romania · 2009

BA, Historical Theology

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania · 2022

Graduate studies in Theology

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania · 2022–2024
Master's-level study and coursework in theology; thesis defense pending.

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Earlier academic and industry experience

• Researcher and Teaching Assistant, University of Ljubljana, 2020–2022.
• Academic roles in electronics and computer science, Transilvania University of Brașov, 2012–2020.
• Earlier engineering work in ASIC/FPGA design, verification, embedded systems and software, including eASIC (now Intel eASIC).

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Awards and recognition

• 2024 — Special Award for Exceptional Research Achievement, University of Ljubljana Faculty of Computer and Information Science, for Mobiprox.
• 2023 — “Best idea”, Agrobiznis Agro Hi-Tech, for AgriAdapt.

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Professional memberships

• 2026–27 — Member, Rights & AI Network (RAIN)
  Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society, University of Toronto
  Inaugural cohort
• Member, International Association for Safe & Ethical AI (IASEAI).

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Contact

University of Ljubljana
Faculty of Computer and Information Science
Ljubljana, Slovenia

Email: octavian [dot] machidon [at] fri [dot] uni-lj [dot] si