DrLuke Heemsbergen

Luke brings focus to where emerging technologies and social relations shape each other, and more importantly, what we should do about it. As the Co-convener of Deakin’s Digital Life Lab and the inaugural Course Director of the Master of Artificial Intelligence for Creative Practice and Design, Luke empowers researchers and students alike to translate complex socio-technical phenomenon into evidence-based frameworks that governments, industry, and the public can engage with, be persuaded by, and contribute to.

His own program of work on emerging sociotechnical relations spans three connected strands: digital disclosure, disinformation, and democracy (from WikiLeaks to WeChat); physical-digital cultures (from Extended Reality to applied algorithmic antagonisms); and novel modes of surveillance and governance (spanning public health to knowledge work). His reserach is grounded in Science and Technology Studies and Media Studies, after time in International Relations.

Beyond conventional research outputs, his collaborative research has been curated by the European Cultural Centre for the 2023 Venice Biennale, exhibited at Melbourne Design Week, Melbourne Knowledge Week, and recognised with a Design Exhibition Award at Ubicomp/ISWC 2024. Civic practice includes the RECapture Lab, and an open access oral histories project documenting creative humans amidst AI.

Luke actively mentors the next generation of researchers in the Digital Life Lab and beyond, currently supervising five doctoral candidates with three stellar candidates having graduated. Before academia, he served in digital diplomacy for Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs and was ‘creative adjacent’ for longer than he admits.

Current Research Affiliations

Deakin Digital Life Lab (Co-Convener)
RECapture Lab (Co-Lead)

Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation (Member)

ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child (Associate Investigator)

Deakin Motion Lab (Member)