PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Beth Singler

Beth Singler studies how artificial intelligence connects with religion and ideas about human identity. She studied Theology and Religious Studies at Pembroke College, Cambridge, worked as a London film writer, and joined Cambridge's Faraday Institute for an AI research project in 2016. Her short film Pain in the Machine won the AHRC Best Research Film of the Year award in 2017, and her work on Cambridge's AI Narratives project examined how stories can influence AI's development and regulation. In 2021, her article The AI Creation Meme won the Digital Religion Research Award; she co-edited The Cambridge Companion to Religion and Artificial Intelligence in 2024, and her book Religion and Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction won the ISSR Book Prize in 2025. As of October 2026, she is an assistant professor in Digital Religion(s) at the University of Zurich and co-director of its URPP Digital Religion(s).

Works
39
Citations
598
h-index
10

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 19 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1999–2010

    Pembroke College and film work

    She studies Theology and Religious Studies at Pembroke College, Cambridge, earning an MA Hons in 2002. From 2002 to 2010, she works as a freelance film writer in London.

  2. 2010–2022

    Cambridge posts and graduate study

    She completes an MPhil in Theology and Religious Studies in 2011 and a PhD in 2016 at Pembroke College, Cambridge. From 2012 to 2022, she serves as an affiliated supervisor and lecturer in Cambridge's Faculty of Divinity; in 2016, she joins the Faraday Institute for Religion and Science at St Edmunds College, University of Cambridge, as a postdoctoral research associate on a project about how robotics and AI affect human identity. In 2018, she becomes a Junior Research Fellow in AI at Homerton College, Cambridge; from 2020 to 2022, she serves as Director of Studies in Theology, Religion, and the Philosophy of Religion there.

  3. 2017–2018

    Pain in the Machine

    Her short film Pain in the Machine wins the AHRC Best Research Film of the Year award in 2017. Through Cambridge's AI Narratives project in 2018, she works with Sarah Dillon and Kanta Dihal to examine how stories about emerging technologies can influence how they are developed, regarded, and regulated.

  4. 2020–2021

    The AI Creation Meme

    Her 2020 article The AI Creation Meme wins the Digital Religion Research Award in 2021. The article studies the new visibility of religion in AI discourse.

  5. 2024

    Editing a Cambridge Companion

    In 2024, she co-edits The Cambridge Companion to Religion and Artificial Intelligence with Fraser Watts and co-writes its introduction, which explores the definitions and histories of religion and AI.

  6. 2024–2025

    Religion and Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction

    Her 2024 book Religion and Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction wins the ISSR Book Prize for professionals and educators in 2025. It examines the entanglement of religion and AI through rejection, adoption, and adaptation.

  7. As of October 2026

    Co-directing Digital Religion(s)

    She is an associate fellow at Cambridge's Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, a role she takes up in 2016. In 2025, she becomes Co-Director of the URPP Digital Religion(s) at the University of Zurich. As of October 2026, she is an assistant professor in Digital Religion(s) at the University of Zurich.

Career

  1. Since 2025University of ZurichCo-Director of URPP Digital Religion(s)
  2. Since 2012University of CambridgeAffiliated Supervisor and Lecturer, Associate Fellow
  3. 2018–2022Homerton College, University of CambridgeJunior Research Fellow in AI, Director of Studies in Theology, Religion, and the Philosophy of Religion
  4. From 2016Faraday Institute for Religion and SciencePostdoctoral Research Associate

Education

  1. 2016Pembroke College, University of CambridgePhD
  2. 2011Pembroke College, University of CambridgeMPhil
  3. 2002Pembroke College, University of CambridgeMA Hons

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

Most-cited works

  1. Portrayals and perceptions of AI and why they matter2018 · 140 citations
  2. “Blessed by the algorithm”: Theistic conceptions of artificial intelligence in online discourse2020 · AI & Society · 128 citations
  3. An Introduction to Artificial Intelligence and Religion For the Religious Studies Scholar2018 · Implicit Religion · 93 citations
  4. The AI Creation Meme: A Case Study of the New Visibility of Religion in Artificial Intelligence Discourse2020 · Religions · 54 citations
  5. EXISTENTIAL HOPE AND EXISTENTIAL DESPAIR IN AI APOCALYPTICISM AND TRANSHUMANISM2019 · Zygon® · 44 citations

From OpenAlex, as of 19 October 2026.

  1. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes University of Cambridge. Our estimates of where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led, from education records in cited biographies.
  2. Stanford University trained or employed 26 of the 108 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes University of Cambridge. Stanford University trained or employed 26 of the 108 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and employment links for major-prize and best-paper winners.
  3. 44% of AI career moves go from one university to anotherIncludes University of Cambridge. We estimate how 13,335 AI career moves link universities, companies, labs and government research centers, with net flows and the most common paths.
  4. Google has the highest combined h-index among AI organizationsIncludes University of Cambridge. Our estimates of combined and median h-index at AI organizations, using current affiliations and OpenAlex records.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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  1. Beth Singler | URPP Digital Religion(s) | UZH digitalreligions.uzh.ch. Checked 18 October 2026.
  2. Yesterday Was a Good Day… – Professor Beth Singler bvlsingler.com. Checked 18 October 2026.
  3. Ch-Ch-Changes! – Professor Beth Singler bvlsingler.com. Checked 18 October 2026.
  4. Beth Singler homerton.cam.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  5. From Homer to HAL: 3000 years of AI narratives | University of Cambridge cam.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  6. Dr Beth Singler wins 2021 Digital Religion Research Award homerton.cam.ac.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  7. Academic Publications – Professor Beth Singler bvlsingler.com. Checked 18 October 2026.
  8. Introduction (Chapter 1) - The Cambridge Companion to Religion and Artificial Intelligence cambridge.org. Checked 18 October 2026.
  9. ISSR 2025 Book Prize - International Society for Science & Religion (ISSR) issr.org.uk. Checked 18 October 2026.
  10. “Religion and AI: An Introduction” Wins! – Professor Beth Singler bvlsingler.com. Checked 18 October 2026.
  11. DSI Insights: Thanks to AI, God fits right in your pocket | Digital Society Initiative | UZH dsi.uzh.ch. Checked 18 October 2026.