My research is in contemporary analytic metaphysics, with a focus on artifacts and artifact kinds. I am interested in how artifactual entities—both concrete and abstract—fit within general ontological theory, and in what distinguishes them from natural and social kinds.

A central question guiding my work is whether artifact kinds admit of essentialist treatment. I examine the roles of intention, function, historical trajectory, and social practice in determining kind membership, identity, and persistence conditions.

Ontology of Artifacts

I investigate what makes something an artifact and what grounds the unity of artifact kinds. This includes work on the metaphysical status of functions, the relation between makers’ intentions and kind membership, and the extent to which artifact kinds possess essences.

I am particularly interested in how artifactual kinds compare to natural kinds and whether standard models of essentialism can be extended to the artifactual domain.

Ontology of Artworks

My research also addresses the ontology of artworks and their relation to broader theories of artifacts. I examine questions concerning the identity, persistence, and individuation of artworks, and the role of aesthetic and functional properties in determining artistic kind membership.

This work engages with debates in both metaphysics and philosophy of art.

Abstract Artifacts

A further strand of my research concerns abstract artifacts such as software and words. I explore how these entities can be created, how they are instantiated, and how they relate to their concrete realizations. This includes work on type–token distinctions, realization relations, and the grounding of abstract yet artifactual entities.

Artifacts and Social Ontology

I am interested in the relation between artifactual kinds and socially constructed kinds. This includes examining the extent to which artifact ontology overlaps with, or diverges from, social ontology, and whether artifactual and social kinds share structural features.

Generative AI and Authorship

More recently, I have examined the metaphysical implications of generative AI for theories of authorship and artifact creation. This work addresses questions about authorial intention, creative agency, and the ontological status of AI-generated artifacts.