Thomas W. Simpson

Papers

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About

Thomas W. Simpson is a philosopher and ethicist whose research centers on the moral and political dimensions of emerging military technologies, with particular expertise in the ethics of autonomous weapons systems. His most influential work, "Just War and Robots' Killings" (2015), has garnered 66 citations and makes a distinctive contribution to the debate over lethal autonomous weapons — commonly known as "killer robots" — by defending their moral permissibility not on consequentialist grounds, as previous proponents had done, but through a non-aggregative ethical framework. This methodological innovation set his work apart in a field dominated by critics of autonomous weapons. His earlier policy paper, "Autonomous Killer Robots Are Probably Good News" (2014), further challenged conventional wisdom by arguing that such systems need not diminish human accountability for wartime conduct; rather, they may enhance the capacity to hold individuals responsible for war crimes. Simpson's scholarship is notable for its willingness to take intellectually unpopular positions while grounding them in rigorous philosophical reasoning. His work is essential reading for students and researchers navigating the rapidly evolving intersection of just war theory, robotics, and international humanitarian law.