Interaction-Centered Design: Quenching the Thirst for Responsible and Trustworthy Human-AI Symbiosis (Seminar)
Dec 2, 2025 — 10 a.m.
Seminar abstract
The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) enables the evolution of machines from relatively simple automation to systems with autonomous functions that augment human capabilities with improved effectiveness and efficiency. The vision of man-computer symbiosis in the 1960s is becoming a reality when the two types of intelligence, human intelligence and machine intelligence, merge and work together as a team. The singularity is near! While AI becomes ubiquitous and capable of rendering autonomous reasoning and decisions, it continuously changes the roles and responsibilities of human functions in human-machine symbiotic partnership. Human roles are becoming increasingly supervisory in nature and machines take more contextual decisions. The digitization of the world is not intended to replace human involvement completely, but this collision of humans and machine intelligence raises questions on their co-existence. Increasingly smart autonomous decision-making power poses risk, accountability, and trust to public safety, like self-driving cars, home care robots, drones. Stringent AI-enabled autonomous system requirements are not just a technical challenge, but design imperative. Designing a collaborative human-AI symbiotic partnership for facilitating dynamic interactions and intelligent adaptations to the changes in human, machine, and working environment is critical.
However, the popular human-centred design approach is obviously not sufficient to address today’s complex interaction issues when transferring the control authority from human to increasingly powerful AI-enabled machine decision-making. This is one of the main reasons of recent catastrophic aviation and autonomous vehicle accidents. A new design paradigm is imperatively needed for the safe, responsible, and trustworthy human-AI partnership. This talk explains an interaction-centred design (ICD) approach as a solution to address a variety of design, development, and operational issues of human-AI symbiosis technologies. The ICD framework guided the development of international standards and a United Nations White Paper to address human-AI interaction issues. An ICD-enabled technological solution of trustworthy, effective, and responsible human-AI collaboration for decision-making in the context of weapon engagement process will be explained as a best practice example for researchers and practitioners who are interested in building and using 21st century human-AI symbiosis technologies.
Featuring:
Dr. Ming Hou
Guest speaker
Dr. Hou is a Principal Scientist and Authority within the Department of National Defence (DND), Canada, an Advisor to the $1.6B Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security program, and the Autonomy Program Manager of the $38.6B NORAD Modernization project. He is also a Canadian National Leader of The Technical Cooperation Program and a Principal Advisor to the NATO Chief Scientist Office. He is responsible for delivering cutting-edge technological solutions, science-based advice, and evidence-based policy recommendations on AI, Autonomy, and Telepresence science, technology, and innovation strategies to senior decision makers within DND and its international partner organizations including the United Nations (UN).
As a world-renowned leading expert in autonomous systems and human-machine intelligence interactions, Dr. Hou has been directing international efforts in related military standardization and large-scale exercises over the past two decades. His influential book: “Intelligent Adaptive Systems: An Interaction-Centered Design Perspective" (two editions) is considered authoritative by experts in academia, industry, defence & security communities, and has been recognized as “quintessential reading for scientists, engineers, practitioners, designers, and anyone interested in building and using 21st century human-computer symbiosis technologies.” His systemic Interaction-Centred Design approach to Autonomy and Human-AI Symbiotic Collaborations has been instrumental in the generation of 1) novel technological solutions including the 1st Canadian Intelligent Tutoring System, the 1st Canadian Command and Control Center for Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems, and the world 1st AI-enabled Decision Support System for Weapon Engagement; 2) Canadian Autonomy science and technology innovation programs; 3) emerging and disruptive Canadian and allied defence & security capabilities; 4) new NATO standards; and 5) the UN White Paper on Autonomous Weapon Systems.
Dr. Hou is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He is the recipient of the most prestigious DND Science and Technology Excellence Award in 2020, the President’s Achievement Award of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada in 2021, and the IEEE Outstanding Contribution Award in 2024. Dr. Hou is an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer and internationally sought-after Principal Communicator with 200+ plenary keynote speeches, panel discussions, and invited lectures at various prestigious scientific and defence fora. He is the General Chair of the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Human-Machine Systems and 2024-2026 International Defence Excellence and Security Symposia. Dr. Hou is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto and the University of Calgary.