University of Oxford awarded a £1.6m John Templeton Foundation grant to support research project exploring artificial intelligence through theological enquiry

Based at the Faculty’s Ian Ramsey Centre for Science and Religion and led by Principal Investigator Dr Lyndon Drake, this major research project will bring theological scholarship into close dialogue with the technical realities of AI. Co-Investigators on the project are Prof. Mark Harris, Prof. Andrew Davison, Prof. Joshua Hordern, and Dr Tim Middleton.

The project frames AI systems as powerful tools which mediate the world and influence human thought and behaviour, drawing on the rich resources of theological thought in these areas to move beyond a false binary of technological utopianism or dystopian fear. The project has two main work streams: interpretation and hermeneutics, and influence and formation. The first stream will involve experimental work with Large Language Models (LLMs), examining the ways that they interact with theological texts, despite LLMs' lack of lived participation in the world, which makes them different in kind from human interpreters. The second stream will theologically analyse the ways a range of AI systems are already reshaping human desires and knowledge, including consideration of epistemology and the formation of political loyalties.  

  

Beginning in December 2026, and running for three years, the project is actively recruiting for three roles:

• Researcher in Large Language Models (full-time)
• Researcher in Political Theology and AI Science (0.5 FTE)
• Researcher in Theology and AI Science (full-time)

Principal Investigator of the research project, Dr Lyndon Drake said: "This project addresses a pressing need for theological contributions to AI science, and careful study of the ways developments in AI systems interact with the field of theology and religion. It also allows me to bring together my own work in both academic fields."

 

Faculty Board Chair, Professor Mark Edwards said: "AI raises significant questions that warrant careful theological scrutiny. This project provides an opportunity to examine its capabilities, limitations and effects through rigorous research. The Faculty welcomes scholarship that brings theological insight to these questions and creates space for informed debate."

 

 

Alongside scholarly publications, the God and the Machine project’s leaders plan to produce educational and other resources to bring its findings into conversations with churches, technology developers, and wider society. Its ambition is to make theological research a substantive contribution to understanding and guiding AI’s role in scholarship and contemporary life.

 

 

The Ian Ramsey Centre, established in 1985, is an internationally recognised research centre at the University of Oxford dedicated to exploring the relationships between science, philosophy, and theology. It supports interdisciplinary scholarship on how scientific developments shape wider questions of meaning, belief, and human understanding.   

 

 

The Faculty of Theology and Religion is one of the world’s leading centres for the academic study of religion, bringing together experts in theology, philosophy, ethics, history, and the study of religions. The Faculty fosters rigorous research and teaching that illuminate the role of religion in human cultures, thought, and public life.   

 

 

Since its opening in 2025, the Schwarzman Centre has provided a new interdisciplinary home for University of Oxford’s humanities faculties. Designed to enhance collaboration and public engagement, the Centre focuses on advancing research into what it means to be human in a complex world, offering cutting-edge facilities for teaching, research, and outreach.    

 

 

This project is made possible through the support of grant #63871 from the John Templeton Foundation.

Founded in 1987, the Foundation supports interdisciplinary research and catalyses conversations that inspire awe and wonder. It works to create a world where people are curious about the wonders of the universe, free to pursue lives of meaning and purpose, and motivated by great and selfless love. 

With an endowment of $4 billion and annual giving of approximately $150 million, the Foundation ranks among the 30 largest grantmaking foundations in the United States. Headquartered outside Philadelphia, its philanthropic activities have engaged all major faith traditions and extended to more than 60 countries around the world. For more information visit https://www.templeton.org/