Short Bio
Robert Ranisch is Senior Researcher and Research Fellow at the Chair of Digital Global Public Health at the Hasso Plattner Institute (HPI) and Full Professor of Medical Ethics with a focus on Digitalization at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Potsdam.
Trained in philosophy, bioethics, and the ethics of technology, he studied at the Universities of Warwick, Oxford, Tübingen, and Jena, and received his PhD from the University of Düsseldorf. His research combines conceptual, empirical, and interdisciplinary approaches to examine the ethical and social challenges posed by digital technologies in healthcare.
His work explores how emerging technologies, including AI, robotics, and genomic medicine, transform healthcare, medical decision-making, and the relationships between patients, healthcare professionals, and institutions. His current research focuses on the ethical implications of generative and agentic AI in medicine and public health. Beyond AI ethics, he is interested in research ethics, public health ethics, and public engagement. He regularly contributes to science communication and public outreach initiatives.
Before joining the University of Potsdam, he established and led the Research Unit for the Ethics of Genome Editing at the University of Tübingen. He previously served as Assistant Professor (Akademischer Rat) at the International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW) and as Managing Director of the Clinical Ethics Committee at Tübingen University Hospital. He has coordinated numerous interdisciplinary research projects on AI in healthcare, digital medicine, social robotics, genomics, and research ethics.
Robert Ranisch is Coordinator of the Working Group "Digitalization and Health" of the Academy for Ethics in Medicine (AEM), the German society for Medical Ethics. He serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of Medical Ethics, Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal Ethik in der Medizin, and is a member of the Editorial Board of BMC Medical Ethics. He has extensive experience in research ethics, advising multinational research consortia and serving on several ethics review boards, including Germany's Specialised Ethics Committee for Special Procedures. He is also a certified consultant, coordinator, and trainer for clinical ethics consultation.
At HPI, his goal is to develop ethical frameworks for responsible digital innovation and to shape the future of healthcare through close collaboration between ethics, medicine, public health, and computer science.
Teaching
Digital Health (M.Sc.)
- Ethics of Digital Health and Technology (Lecture / Seminar)
- Digital Medical Ethics Bootcamp (Lecture / Seminar)
IT Systems Engineering (B.Sc.)
- Ethics, Computer Science and Society [Ethik, Informatik und Gesellschaft] (Lecture)
Professional Skills
- AI Ethics (Seminar)
- Data- and AI Ethics (Seminar)
- Embedded Ethics (Seminar)
- Introduction to Ethics for Computer Scientists (Seminar)
Short Resume
- Senior Researcher, Chair of Digital Global Public Health 2026 — Present
Hasso Plattner Institute (HPI) — Potsdam - Full Professor of Medical Ethics with a focus on Digitalization 2026 — Present
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Potsdam — Potsdam - Tenure Track Professor 2021 — 2026
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Potsdam — Potsdam - Head of the Research Unit for the Ethics of Genome Editing 2017 — Present
- Assistant Professor (Akademischer Rat) 2020 — 2021
International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW), University of Tübingen — Tübingen - Managing Director, Clinical Ethics Committee 2017— 2021
University Hospital Tübingen — Tübingen - Visiting Researcher (selected)
Susimetsa — University of Tartu; Fondation Brocher — Geneva; Oxford Uehiro Centre — University of Oxford, and other institutions
Selected Publications
- Digital bioethics: exploring an emerging field. Starke, G., Balke, W. T., Benzinger, L., Buchholz, O., Burghardt, M., Meier, L. J., Ranisch, R., … & Salloch, S. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy (2026).
- Ethical aspects of the use of social robots in caring for older people: A systematic qualitative review. Leineweber, M., Keusgen, C. V., Bubeck, M., Ranisch, R., Haltaufderheide, J., & Klingler, C. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy (2026).
- Foundation models in medicine are a social experiment: Time for an ethical framework. Ranisch, R., & Haltaufderheide, J. npj Digital Medicine(2025), 8(1), 525.
- Rapid Integration of LLMs in Healthcare Raises Ethical Concerns.Ranisch, R., & Haltaufderheide, J. Digital Society (2025).
- The ethical landscape of robot-assisted surgery: A systematic review.Haltaufderheide, J., … & Ranisch, R. Journal of Robotic Surgery (2025).
- Reporting guideline for the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools in Medical Research: The GAMER Statement. Luo, X., Tham, Y. C., Giuffrè, M., Ranisch, R., Daher, M., Lam, K., … & GAMER Working Group. BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine (2025), 30(6), 390–400.
- Data governance must consider the interests of the global community. Rueda, J., Porsdam Mann, S., Delgado, J., Earp, B. D., Jongsma, K., Mertes, H., … & Puyol, A. Nature Medicine (2025), 31(10), 3223–3224.
- The ethics of ChatGPT in medicine and healthcare: A systematic review on Large Language Models (LLMs). Haltaufderheide, J., & Ranisch, R. npj Digital Medicine (2024), 7(1), 1–11.
- Non-empirical methods for ethics research on digital technologies in medicine, health care and public health: A systematic journal review.Ursin, F., Müller, R., Funer, F., Liedtke, W., Renz, D., Wiertz, S., & Ranisch, R. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy (2024), 27(4), 513–528.
- "That's just Future Medicine": A qualitative study on users' experiences of symptom checker apps. Müller, R., … & Ranisch, R. BMC Medical Ethics (2024), 25(1), 17.
- Artificial Intelligence in Reproductive Medicine—An Ethical Perspective. Rolfes, V., …, Ranisch, R., & Fangerau, H. Geburtshilfe und Frauenheilkunde (2023), 83(1), 106–115.
- “ChatGPT, Can You Help Me Save My Child's Life?”—Diagnostic Accuracy and Supportive Capabilities to Lay Rescuers by ChatGPT in Prehospital Basic Life Support and Paediatric Advanced Life Support Cases: An In Silico Analysis. Bushuven, S., … & Ranisch, R. Journal of Medical Systems (2023), 47(1), 123.
- Digital contact tracing and exposure notification: Ethical guidance for trustworthy pandemic management. Ranisch, R., Nijsingh, N., Ballantyne, A., van Bergen, A., Buyx, A., Friedrich, O., Hendl, T., Marckmann, G., Munthe, C., & Wild, V. Ethics and Information Technology(2021), 23(3), 285–294.