Henry Potter

Biography

Henry Potter is a philosopher of science whose work sits at the intersection of metaphysics, theoretical biology, and the philosophy of mind and action. His research focuses on developing realist accounts of human agency and libertarian free will from the perspective of the biological sciences. He is also interested in exploring the implications of this work for questions of moral responsibility and human flourishing in the age of artificial intelligence.

In his current research project, Potter is developing an ethical framework for AI development centred on the notion of ‘agential character formation’—the ability to exercise control over the formation of one’s own moral and cognitive character. Drawing on the neurobiology of belief formation and goal acquisition, he identifies certain conditions (situational, developmental, and socio-cultural) under which the human capacity for agential character formation can be either strengthened or undermined. He then argues that we ought to be designing and integrating AI systems into our everyday lives in the ways that facilitate, rather than diminish, this capacity. Alongside this work, Potter is also collaborating with the Zorlutuna Lab on a project exploring the ethics of bioengineering.

Potter received his Ph.D. from the Institute of Genetics at Trinity College Dublin in 2025. He also holds an M.Sc. in philosophy and cognitive science from the University of Edinburgh and a B.A. in linguistics from University College London. His research has appeared in journals such as Synthese, European Journal of Neuroscience, and Behavioral and Brain Sciences. Outside of academia, he has spent time working as an AI ethics consultant and as a cybersecurity researcher.