Contact Dr Anne-Marie Oostveen
- Email: J.M.Oostveen@cranfield.ac.uk
- Twitter:
Areas of expertise
- Human Factors
- Industrial Automation
- Industrial Ergonomics and Human Factors
Background
Anne-Marie holds a PhD in Social Informatics and an MA in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Amsterdam. Before joining the Industrial Psychology and Human Factors Group at 成人直播 in 2020, she held research positions at the University of Oxford, the Rathenau Institute, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the University of Amsterdam .
Her research explores the intersection of technology, society, and ethics, focusing on how emerging technologies impact people鈥檚 lives, work, and values. With a strong participatory approach, she鈥檚 worked on both the design and evaluation of technologies in areas ranging from public services to automation and AI.
Anne-Marie鈥檚 work has been funded by the European Commission, EPSRC, and other major institutions. She was awarded a Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship to explore e-democracy and public trust and has published extensively across academic and public-facing platforms.
Research opportunities
Anne-Marie鈥檚 current work centres on the ethics of AI and robotics, with a particular focus on emerging fields such as drones, digital manufacturing, soft robotics, and nanobots. She explores how these technologies are developed, how they might be used responsibly, and how frameworks such as the EU AI Act can help embed socio-ethical principles into research and design.
Anne-Marie works at the intersection of:
鈥� Ethics up front and responsible innovation in AI and robotics
鈥� Socio-technical analysis of AI and robotic systems in real-world contexts
鈥� Trust, acceptance, and decision-making in human-technology interaction
鈥� Regulation and standards for emerging technologies
鈥� Stakeholder engagement and qualitative research methods
鈥� Advisory roles on high-stakes public systems, including automated border control and e-voting
鈥� Human-robot interaction in safety-critical and emerging application domains
Her work focuses on bridging the gap between technological capability and real-world adoption by ensuring AI and robotic systems are trustworthy, ethically grounded, and usable in practice.
This focus builds on a long-standing interest in the relationship between technology and society. Earlier in her career, Anne-Marie studied large and complex socio-technical systems, including e-voting, automated border control, and digital public service platforms. She examined how such systems are used and perceived, and how people鈥檚 values, attitudes, and behaviours shape their adoption. She has also investigated surveillance technologies such as biometrics and child-tracking systems, always with attention to the social trends and debates driving technological change. Her approach is participatory and problem-oriented: she believes that technologies should not only be designed for people but also with them, by involving diverse stakeholders in the process.
Beyond her own research, Anne-Marie plays an active role in the broader robotics and AI ethics community. She serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Climbing and Walking Robots (JCWR), published by Bon View, where she contributes to shaping the direction of scholarship in the field. She is also Guest Editor of a Special Issue on 鈥淓nhancing Manufacturing through Human-Collaborative Robot Integration鈥� for Applied Sciences. In addition, Anne-Marie serves as the General Chair for the ICRES 2026 and CLAWAR 2026 conferences. As an independent expert for the European Commission, she evaluates proposals, reviews projects, and supports the development of new programmes and policies.
Current activities
CURRENT CRANFIELD PROJECTS
- MASTERLY aims to develop flexible robotic solutions, constituting of modular grippers combined with state-of-the-art robotic technologies, enhanced with AI-driven advanced control and perception capabilities that will allow them to act autonomously, handling a large variety of parts varying in size, shape, and material, while being accepted by both genders of workforce. [https://www.masterly-project.eu/]
- CONVERGING aims to develop, deploy, validate, and promote smart and reconfigurable production systems including multiple autonomous agents (collaborative robots, AGVs, humans) that are able to act in diverse production environments. [https://www.converging-project.eu/]
TEACHING
- MSc Applied Artificial Intelligence: Module leader and lecturer 'Ethical, Regulatory, and Social Aspects of AI' (ERS) compulsory module. [/courses/taught/applied-artificial-intelligence]
- MSc Connected and Autonomous Vehicles Engineering: Module leader and lecturer 'Ethics, Safety, and Regulation' (ESR).
- MSc Robotics: Lecturer 'Psychology, Ethics and Standards' (PES) compulsory module. [/courses/taught/robotics]
- Short Course: Module leader and lecturer on the 2-day intensive course 'Ethics of AI and Robotics', which equips professionals and academics with the tools and knowledge to address the societal, legal, and environmental implications of these transformative technologies. [/courses/short/aerospace/aero-ethics-of-ai-and-robotics]
PREVIOUS CRANFIELD PROJECTS
- FEROX: Using AI, robotics, and data tools to support wild food harvesting in Nordic forests, FEROX aims to improve working conditions for seasonal berry pickers. Anne-Marie leads research on work practices, socio-ethical impacts, and user acceptance. [https://ferox.fbk.eu]
- Made Smarter Innovation 鈥� Smart Robotics: This UKRI-funded centre addresses the social acceptability of collaborative robots in manufacturing. Anne-Marie investigates how automation reshapes work, skills, and public perception鈥攄eveloping ethical frameworks and policy guidance.
- DigiTOP: Exploring how trust, ethics, and awareness influence the adoption of digital manufacturing technologies. Anne-Marie contributed to assessing individual and organisational readiness for tech integration on factory floors.
- RAS Human Factors (MOD/Dstl): Developed guidance on human-centred design and testing of robotic and autonomous systems (RAS) in defence, with a focus on usability, safety, and trust.
