Toni Sims
I am a researcher affiliated with New York University’s Center for Mind, Ethics, and Policy, where I investigate nonhuman consciousness and the boundaries of moral concern. I focus on bringing philosophical clarity to debates about new technologies and to the institutions shaping their development.
Research
Nonhuman consciousness
My research centers on nonhuman consciousness, focusing on behavioral indicators and boundary cases. I am particularly interested in how to identify and distinguish digital minds. These questions bear directly on debates about moral status.
Human and nonhuman moral psychology
I investigate moral psychology in humans and, increasingly, in AI systems. I am particularly interested in how patterns of moral reasoning develop and how digital minds may mirror, extend, or reshape human moral judgment.
Public philosophy
I work to translate abstract and highly uncertain philosophical questions into practical applications. I am especially interested in how careful conceptual work can inform real-world decision making.
Publications
Sebo, J., White, A., & Sims, T. “One Health and Multispecies Urban Infrastructure.” In J. Kotzmann & K. Woolaston (Eds.), One Health and the Law: Existing Frameworks, Intersections and Future Pathways. Cambridge University Press (forthcoming in 2026).
Sims, T., Franks, B., Ryan, E., & Sebo, J. “From Pandas to Corals: Assessing the Animal Welfare Impacts of Assisted Reproduction Technologies.” Journal of Applied Animal Ethics Research (2025).
Sims, T. and Sebo, J. “Ethical Oversight for Insect Research.” Zoophilologica (2025).
Long, R., Sebo, Jeff, & Sims, T. “Is There a Tension between AI Safety and AI Welfare?” Philosophical Studies (2025).
Sebo, J., Dietz, E., & Sims, T. “Towards a Global Ban on Industrial Animal Agriculture by 2050” Environmental Law (2025).
Andrews, K., Birch, J., Jeff Sebo, & Sims, T. “Background to the New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness” (2024).
Long, R., Sebo, J., Butlin, P., Finlinson, K., Fish, K., Harding, J., Pfau, J., Sims, T., Birch, J., & Chalmers, D. “Taking AI Welfare Seriously.” arXiv (2024).
White, A., Sebo, J., Franks, B., Minelli, A., Wyman, K., Krupa, D., Morris, V., & Sims, T. Wild “Animal Welfare in Local Policies on Land Use and the Built Environment.” Guarini Center on Environmental, Energy and Land Use Law (2024).
Adleberg, T., Franks, B., Minelli, A., Sebo, J., Wyman, K., & White, A. Considering Wild Animal Welfare in Benefit-Cost Analysis [Public Comment to OIRA] (2023).
Thompson, M., T. Adleberg, S. Sims, and E. Nahmias, “Why Do Women Leave Philosophy? Surveying Students at the Introductory Level” Philosophers’ Imprint 16:6 (2016).
Adleberg, T., M Thompson, and E. Nahmias, “Do men and women have different philosophical intuitions? Further data.” Philosophical Psychology 28:5 (2014).
Adleberg, T. “The Thought Experiments Are Rigged: Mechanistic Understanding Inhibits Mentalistic Understanding,” MA thesis under the direction of Eddy Nahmias at Georgia State University (2013).
Towards a Global Ban on Industrial Animal Agriculture by 2050
This article outlines the environmental, health, and social harms of large-scale animal farming and proposes international legal precedents and policy steps toward a gradual, just transition away from this food system.
Highlights
Taking AI Welfare Seriously
We argue that there is a realistic possibility that some AI systems could be conscious or robustly agentic in the near future. Because of this possibility, AI welfare and moral patienthood deserve serious attention from researchers and companies. We propose early steps for assessment and policy.
Is There a Tension Between AI Safety and AI Welfare?
There may sometimes be a tension between efforts to ensure ‘AI safety’ (i.e., protecting humans and other animals from AI systems) and ‘AI welfare’ (i.e., protecting AI systems from humans and other animals). We should develop thoughtful approaches that promote both where possible.
Contact
For research collaboration or writing inquiries, please contact: toni.sims@nyu.edu
