Ludwig-Uhland-Institut für Empirische Kulturwissenschaft

Miguel Gomez-Hernandez

Project staff / Postdoc

Kontakt
Cluster of Excellence “Machine Learning” | Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen | Maria-von-Linden-Str. 6, 72076 Tübingen
Ludwig-Uhland-Institut für Empirische Kulturwissenschaft | Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen | Burgsteige 11, 72070 Tübingen
miguel.gomez-hernandezspam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de

Main Areas in Research and Teaching

 

Academic Profile

I am a futures anthropologist and postdoctoral researcher in the Norms and Practices Lab at the Cluster of Excellence Machine Learning for Science, with a secondary affiliation at the Institute for Historical and Cultural Anthropology since June 2026. I did my PhD at the Emerging Technologies Research Lab, supervised by Sarah Pink, researching how older adults and ageing-technology industries imagine future lives for older people. My current research is focused on scientists' imagined engagements with Artificial Intelligence, drawing on futures anthropology and STS. Methodologically, I combine video-ethnographic home visits with visual tools — comic-based and GenAI scenarios — and analyses of industry narratives.
My background includes an MSc in Techno-Anthropology at Aalborg University (Denmark) and a dual BA in Sociology and Political Science at UC3M (Madrid), including an exchange year at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland). Originally from Spain, I have also lived in Russia and speak intermediate Russian. Before my PhD, I researched the usability of mHealth apps and sensors for older people. My publications span the social sciences and digital health, and I have taught medical anthropology, design thinking, and HCI.

CV

June 2026 – present: Postdoctoral researcher, Cluster of Excellence Machine Learning for Science | Institute for Historical and Cultural Anthropology
May 2024 – May 2026: Research Assistant, Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture, Monash University, Australia
January 2023 – June 2026: PhD Teaching Fellow at MADA and at the Faculty of IT and Faculty of Arts, Monash University, Australia
September 2020 – November 2022: Assistant Lecturer, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain 
September 2019 – July 2022: UX Researcher, Ageing Lab, Centre for Biomedical Technology, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
2018–2020: MSc, Techno-Anthropology, Aalborg University, Denmark
July 2017 - December 2017: Assistant Programmer, Boston Consulting Group, Spain
2017: Erasmus exchange, 9 months, at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland
January 2015 - June 2016: Web Programmer, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
2013–2018: Dual BA, Sociology and Political Science, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain

Academic Memberships

ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making & Society | December 2022 - Present | link
Applied Club co-lead in Emerging Technologies | EASA Applied Anthropology Network | link
European Association of Social Anthropologists | April 2023 – Present

Publications

Articles and chapters
Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2026). Using Generative Artificial Intelligence Images as a Qualitative Method to Research Aging-Technology Futures. Qualitative Inquiry, 0(0). doi.org/10.1177/10778004251412869
Page, R., Noches, P., and Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2025) Primary Perspectives on Design Research: Making and Action-Oriented Epistemology in Design., in Chang, C.-Y., and Hsu, Y. (eds.), IASDR 2025: Design Next, 02-05 December, Taiwan. doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.166
Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2024). Industry visions of technology for older adults: A futures anthropology perspective. Journal of Aging Studies, 70, 101248. doi.org/10.1016/j.jaging.2024.101248
Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2024). Doing Futures-Anthropology Research in Visions of Aging Technology. Anthropology & Aging45(2), 90-95. doi: 10.5195/aa.2024.554
Gomez-Hernandez, M., Ferre, X., & Moral, C., & Villalba-Mora, E. (2023). Design Guidelines of Mobile Apps for Older Adults: Systematic Review and Thematic Analysis. JMIR mHealth and uHealth 2023; 11:e43186; doi: 10.2196/43186
Gomez-Hernandez, M., Adrian, S. W., Ferre, X., & Villalba-Mora, E. (2022). Implicit, explicit, and structural barriers and facilitators for information and communication technology access in older adults. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 874025.
Gomez-Hernandez, M., Mora, E. V., & Ferre, X. (2020). Use of Mobile Phones and Tablets amongst Spanish Seniors: Barriers and Motivations. In ICT4AWE (pp. 50-58).
Barambones, J., Abavisani, A., Mora, E. V., Gomez-Hernandez, M., & Ferré, X. (2020). Discussing on Gamification for Elderly Literature, Motivation and Adherence. In ICT4AWE (pp. 308-313).
 
Book Reviews
Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2025). Ageing with Smartphones in Japan: Care in a visual digital age: by Laura Haapio-Kirk, UCL Press, 2024, 308 pp., ISBN 9781787355774 (paperback). Anthropological Forum, 1–3. doi.org/10.1080/00664677.2025.2583534
 
Blog
Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2025). Moving and falling in future homes as we age. AnthroArt. Retrieved from https://theanthro.art/ageing-in-the-anthropocene/

Conference Presentations

Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2025) Using GenAI images to rewrite alternative ageist futures. International Society for Ethnology and Folklore (SIEF). Aberdeen, June 3-7.
Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2025) Older adults anticipating anxious technology failures and improvising responses in automated smart home scenarios. Ageing in the digital era. An Interdisciplinary Debate on ICTs and Social Inclusion for Older Adults. Milan, February 20-21.
Gomez-Hernandez, M., Berwyn K., and Sharifah, R. (2024) Older People Moving in their Homes: How Older Adults’ Mobility Challenges Industry and Governments Visions. ADM+S Mobilities Symposium. Sydney, October 15-17. Video available here

Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2024) Ageing with technology futures: industry and older people's visions. EASA 2024: Doing and Undoing with Anthropology. Barcelona, July 23-26.

The presentation was featured and illustrated in AnthroArt (see link)

Gomez-Hernandez, M. (2024) Anthropological research in ageing futures. AgeNet Conference 2024: Kinning, Moving, and Growing in Later Life. Venice, March 14-15. 
Gomez-Hernandez, M., Villalba-Mora, E., and Ferre, X. (2020) Use of Mobile Phones and Tablets amongst Spanish Seniors: Barriers and Motivations. 6th International Conference on Information and Communications Technology for Ageing Well and e-Health. Prague, May 3-5.
Barambones, J., Abavisani, A., Mora, E. V., Gomez-Hernandez, M., & Ferré, X. (2020) Discussing on Gamification for Elderly Literature, Motivation and Adherence. 6th International Conference on Information and Communications Technology for Ageing Well and e-Health. Prague, May 3-5.

Interviews and Media Appearances

Interviews across media podcasts, industry, and academia
SBS-Australia (Spanish) | Experts’ views on AI for older people | 2026: link | Audio available here
SBS-Australia (Spanish) | My research in Australia | 2024: link | Audio available here
The Emic in the Netherlands | My fieldwork with older adults | 2024 | Audio available here
Unified Anthropology Association Online at Arizona State University | Introduction to Design Anthropology | 2024 | Video available here
Corporate Anthropology in Mexico | Future technology and innovation: transforming the health of older adults | 2024: link | Video available here
Amazing Player | My volunteering with food banks | 2014: link
Media Coverage and Research Features (AgeTech Industry & Academia)
Centre for Sociodigital Futures, University of Bristol, 2025: link
AgeTech Labs - company in Canada, 2024: link 
Silver Economy Forum India, 2023: link
Treho - AgeTech company in Colombia, 2023: link
Monash Information-Technology, 2024: link
Technical University of Madrid, 2022: link 
My research gets a call out by one ADM+S member, 2024: link 
Six AgeTech companies endorsed my work commenting on this post, 2024: link

Invited Talks

Presentation at the College of Design and Innovation - Tongji University in China (in person): link
Presentation at the Centre for Organisations and Social Change (COSC) in RMIT (online): evidence within newsletter, page 3, 1st link and 2nd link
Presentation at Futures Hypha 2026 at the University of Technology Sydney.
Guest Speaker at the Centre for Sociodigital Futures at the University of Bristol (UK) (in person): link
Guest speaker at MPAVILION - Home Ground, The Golden Years (in person): link (listen to the conversation on this Spotify link)
Guest speaker at SRAP - Research Bites Melbourne (in person): link
Guest speaker at EASA-AgeNet (online): link | Webinar video

Organization of conferences, panels, and workshops

GenAI as a qualitative social science method, Workshop at the RMIT (April, 2024), Melbourne (Australia).