Incoming Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science and Technology, University of Cambridge

Dr. Katie Seaborn is an incoming Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Technology at the University of Cambridge, joining in February 2026. She is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Industrial Engineering and Economics, Associate Faculty Member in the Engineering Sciences and Design program, and Director of the Aspirational Computing Lab at the Institute of Science Tokyo (formerly Tokyo Institute of Technology).

Katie’s academic journey began with a BA and MSc in Interactive Arts and Technology from Simon Fraser University, Canada. She went on to complete her PhD in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto in 2016, with a collaborative specialization in Knowledge Media Design. Before academia, Katie worked as an interaction designer, user experience developer, and web programmer in both the public and private sectors in Canada and the UK.

Her research is grounded in the multidisciplinary field of human-computer interaction (HCI). She focuses on attitude and behavior change in computer-based interactive contexts, notably by exploring methods and platforms to build resilience against information deception (e.g., misinformation) and interface deception (e.g., dark patterns). Katie is internationally recognized for her research on dark patterns and deceptive design in the user interface (UI), especially in the Japanese context, where she has led large-scale analyses of popular mobile apps and investigated legal and cultural nuances that influence the prevalence and perception of such practices [e.g., Seaborn et al., CHI EA '25, 2025; Seaborn et al., CHI EA '24, 2024; Hidaka ... and Seaborn, CHI '23, 2023]. Her work has been featured in national programmes by Japanese public broadcaster NHK. Her work extends to global and legal perspectives, calling for stronger theoretical foundations and regulatory frameworks to protect the public from manipulative digital experiences. She has contributed to foundational reviews of theory in deception research [Chang, Seaborn, and Andrews, CHI EA '24, 2024], advocating for interdisciplinary approaches that bridge computer science, law, ethics, and digital rhetoric.

Katie has also led impactful projects in civic engagement within the UK, notably taking on a leading role in research at UCL on large-scale citizen engagement around urban issues, such as food waste recycling, where she led work on scaling up interventions to address low levels of urban food waste recycling [Seaborn, Mähönen, and Rogers, DIS '20, 2020].