About Us
Mission
Our mission is to build interdisciplinary and inclusive communities that advance understanding of the ethical, social, and policy implications of AI and robotics. We develop research, tools, and public-facing resources that inform responsible innovation and contribute to evidence-based policy and governance in emerging technologies.
Meet the team
Shalaleh Rismani
Executive Director & Researcher
Jordan Eshpeter
Researcher & Member of Board of Director
Muriam Fancy
Policy Analyst & Member of Board of Director
Cheng Lin
Researcher and software engineer
AJung Moon
Founder and advisor
ORI Community
ORI has emerged through the dedicated and passionate work that our founder, advisors, and volunteers have done since 2012. We want to particularly thank Dr. AJung Moon for founding ORI in 2012, leading it for 10 years, and currently serving in an advisory role. Our founding members and advisors, namely Dr. Croft, Dr. Van der Loos, Dr. Verrugio, Dr. Operto, and Dr. Millar, for playing an instrumental role in shaping and building ORI’s vision. We also want to thank all our volunteers who have contributed significantly to a wide range of ORI projects, including the public opinion polls, the FAIE toolkit and the ORI learning hub guide.
History of ORI
The Open Roboethics Institute is a non-profit organization that has been leading discussions about the social and ethical implications of AI and robotics technologies since 2012. In 2012, Dr. AJung Moon founded this initiative with a focus on understanding public opinion on ethical concerns regarding the use of robots in various contexts, including healthcare, military, and transportation. From 2012-2016, ORI founding executives and members led a series of public opinion polls which asked critical questions about the use of robots at home, lethal autonomous weapons and autonomous vehicles.
In 2016, ORI was incorporated as a nonprofit organization under the directorship of Dr. AJung Moon, Dr. Jason Millar and Dr. Shalaleh Rismani, focusing on research and consulting on applied AI ethics and robotics projects. The incorporation of ORI was accompanied by the launch of a consultancy organization, Generation R, to address robot and AI ethics issues. The consultancy was retired after two years, and all of its assets were transferred to ORI. In the course of that work, OR and Generation R leads developed a systematic method that anyone can use to create an ethics strategy for their own AI projects. With the hope of enabling more people to align the technologies they design, this systematic process was shaped into the Foresight into AI Ethics (FAIE) toolkit available for anyone to use in 2019. In 2022, ORI directorship was transitioned to the current team, with some of the previous directors acting as advisors.
After releasing the FAIE toolkit, in 2021, ORI started a new initiative – ORI Learning Hubs. ORI Learning Hubs were interdisciplinary reading and discussion groups for undergraduate students at university campuses across Canada. ORI has launched learning hubs at McGill University, the University of Waterloo, and the University of Guelph. Then, in 2024, ORI released the Learning Hubs toolkit. Since 2024, ORI has focused on a number of side projects, including leading conversations on the impact of robotics in the workplace. To follow our work, reach out to us at contact@openroboethics.org or check out our blogs.