Show Notes
Having an AI boyfriend or girlfriend might seem creepy, but what if it helped you get better at human relationships? In this episode, we talk with David Eagleman, a professor of neuroscience at Stanford, bestselling author, and science communicator. We discuss how AI and other technologies can help us become better humans – wiser, kinder and more empathetic, not just more productive. We get a neuroscientist’s take on how human and artificial intelligence interact, including: How to use AI to better understand other people and improve our relationships. Using debate AIs in schools to make younger generations better at critical thinking and grasping both sides of an argument. Is AI making our lives too easy by removing the friction we need to learn? Technologies that could expand what’s possible with our brain, from mind uploading to brain-to-brain communication.
Timestamps: 0:00 Cold open 1:38 How David Eagleman became a neuroscientist 4:46 How malleable is the brain? 6:29 Can AI make us better humans? The Reddit debate bot experiment 11:00 AI relationships and becoming better at dating real people 14:24 Using AI to hear his late father's voice again 18:26 Mind uploading and digital immortality 23:27 What technology could make us more kind and empathetic 24:04 How AI could revolutionize debate education and critical thinking 28:30 Why AI needs a "tough love" mode to help us grow 30:17 Does AI making life easier rob us of useful friction for learning? 34:21 Why brain-to-brain communication probably won't help us understand each other 37:29 Could neurotechnology let us experience the world as another species? 41:58 The current state of neuroscience and where it's heading 48:05 How to get started if you're inspired by this conversation
On the Existential Hope Podcast hosts Allison Duettmann and Beatrice Erkers from the Foresight Institute invite scientists, founders, and philosophers for in-depth conversations on positive, high-tech futures.
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