Prof. Dr. David Cropley

About

David Cropley is the Professor of Engineering Innovation at Adelaide University. Dr Cropley is author of ten books including Creativity and crime: A psychological analysis (Cambridge University Press, 2013) and lead editor of The Dark Side of Creativity (Cambridge University Press, 2010). His recent research has focused on creativity and generative AI, including how these intersect in classroom creativity assessment, and the fundamental limitations on large language model (LLM) creativity.

At the Weizenbaum-Institut he will be participating in research focused on Human Creativity and the Law as part of the CreVal Project. Professor Cropley has been investigating creativity for 30 years, focused on a range of questions including the assessment of product creativity, fostering creativity in education, understanding organisational innovation capacity, and creativity in AI. He has published over 100 journal papers and book chapters on creativity and innovation. Outside of research, Professor Cropley sings in a rock/blues band (300 Joules) in Adelaide and has been spotted at Monster Ronsons Ichiban Karaoke in Berlin. 

Research Group: Security and Transparency of Digital Processes (2.11.-18.11.2026)