AI & The Future of Humanity: Artificial Intelligence, Technology, VR, Algorithm, Automation, ChatBPT, Robotics, Augmented Re

The Creative Process
The Creative Process

What are the dangers, risks, and opportunities of AI? What role can we play in designing the future we want to live in? With the rise of automation, what is the future of work? We talk to experts about the roles government, organizations, and individuals can play to make sure powerful technologies truly make the world a better place–for everyone. Conversations with futurists, philosophers, AI experts, scientists, humanists, activists, technologists, policymakers, engineers, science fiction authors, lawyers, designers, artists, among others. The interviews are hosted by founder and creative educator Mia Funk with the participation of students, universities, and collaborators from around the world.

  1. 1d ago

    Art as the Ultimate Technology: Preserving the Human Core in the Age of AI w/ LINCOLN CENTER’S SHANTA THAKE

    “Lincoln Center is multiple stages. I think probably over three dozen stages across 16 acres. It is a vast canvas in and of itself. And then we have this beautiful plaza that leads to this beautiful campus, and that’s the visual I think that most people have when they think of Lincoln Center is this beautiful fountain in the center and these three gorgeous buildings.It’s New York’s biggest plaza, and it feels very vibrant and beautiful. In the summer, we really take that plaza and we transform it into a dance floor. So this idea of also interrupting what people’s notion of Lincoln Center is because it’s a space that is very aspirational, which is a great thing.” Shanta Thake is the Chief Artistic Officer at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts—the nation's largest performing arts complex. Before stepping into this role, she spent sixteen years at The Public Theater, shaping the city's cultural landscape through Joe's Pub and expansive community initiatives. Today, she is tearing down walls—both the literal barriers separating Lincoln Center from its neighbors, and the figurative ones that dictate who belongs in our cultural spaces. She views the arts not as a luxury, but as essential civic infrastructure. We are pleased to have Shanta Thake to discuss her journey, the power of radical curation, and the future of public performance. (0:00) Reimagining Lincoln Center (2:27) Art and the Human Experience (4:40) The Curiosity of Childhood (5:44) Alvin Ailey and the Pivot (8:29) The Invisible Arts (9:06) The Power of Public Theater (17:03) Curation, Programming and the Art of Listening (23:42) San Juan Hill and The Wall (31:23) Art as the Oldest Technology (35:02) globalFEST: Music and Connection (38:20) Finding Universal Belonging (41:20) The Gift of Pause (54:27) A Collective Caretaking Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    Art as the Ultimate Technology: Preserving the Human Core in the Age of AI w/ LINCOLN CENTER’S SHANTA THAKE

  2. 1d ago

    AI,  Robotics, VR, Bio-plastics: LINCOLN CENTER’S Shanta Thake on the Power of Performing Arts in the Age of AI - Highlights

    "I really do believe that the arts are critical to how we move forward together, and live performance in particular, I think, is a way of us practicing how to move across our ideological boundaries and find one another and imagine these new worlds together and create together." Shanta Thake is the Chief Artistic Officer at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts—the nation's largest performing arts complex. Before stepping into this role, she spent sixteen years at The Public Theater, shaping the city's cultural landscape through Joe's Pub and expansive community initiatives. Today, she is tearing down walls—both the literal barriers separating Lincoln Center from its neighbors, and the figurative ones that dictate who belongs in our cultural spaces. She views the arts not as a luxury, but as essential civic infrastructure. We are pleased to have Shanta Thake to discuss her journey, the power of radical curation, and the future of public performance. (00:01) Art as the Oldest Technology (07:50) The Gift of Pause (09:55) Reimagining Lincoln Center (12:19) A Collective Caretaking (12:56) The Curiosity of Childhood (18:02) San Juan Hill and The Wall (20:39) globalFEST: Music and Connection Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    AI,  Robotics, VR, Bio-plastics: LINCOLN CENTER’S Shanta Thake on the Power of Performing Arts in the Age of AI - Highlights

  3. Jul 31

    Surviving the AI Hype Cycle Without Losing Your Mind (or Your Job) w/ NACHO DE GREGORIO - Highlights

    “ I'm a believer in this technology. I believe that the cheaper it is, the more people will use it. So, even if we assume that models will get smaller for the same level of intelligence, the demand to actually have more compute is going to be enormous. And the reason why you want to have the, the compute close to you is not only in terms of performance. As a national security threat, I'm not saying this will happen, but it could happen that, China or US or whoever decides to stop exporting compute to the rest of the world. If that happens today, Europe has zero AI at the scale of data the data center.” For over a decade, technology has promised to make life easier. Social media was meant to connect us, we were told smartphones would simplify our lives, and now artificial intelligence promises to lift even more daily burdens. Yet these advances also raise an important question: when do tools enhance human creativity, and when do they replace the very experiences that give life meaning? While AI holds immense promise, many people face challenges coping with current technological advancements that ‘redefine’ human communication, work, education, and democratic values. Today, we examine societal and cultural impacts of AI, identity, inclusion, governance, education, and community well-being. And are speaking with Nacho de Gregorio, author of TheWhiteBox, one of Medium's most-followed AI analysts, for a level-headed conversation about both the remarkable potential and the real limitations of AI. (0:22) The hidden risks of the AI debt bubble (0:55) Shadow borrowing and the data center boom (3:12) The AI compute gap and national security (5:40) Europe's missing infrastructure and tech sovereignty (8:13) The Jevons paradox and the demand for compute (10:25) Why open source AI is the best path forward (12:31) The chess paradox and the future of human art (12:53) Unmeasurable domains and future-proofing your career (14:00) Tutoring and AI in education (15:11) Navigating AI slop and the information ecosystem (16:24) The Pleasure of Waiting vs. The Hustle Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    Surviving the AI Hype Cycle Without Losing Your Mind (or Your Job) w/ NACHO DE GREGORIO - Highlights

  4. Jul 22

    AI, Algorithms & Preserving the Human Core of Memory with GEORGI GOSPODINOV & ANGELA RODEL - Highlights

    Today, we have a conversation about time, memory, and the bittersweet geography of human sorrow. Georgi Gospodinovis widely considered one of the most daring voices in contemporary European literature. His acclaimed novel, The Physics of Sorrow, won the prestigious Jan Michalski Prize in 2016, blending ancient myth and quantum physics to chronicle the delicate realities of post-socialist Eastern Europe. Joining him is Angela Rodel, a brilliant linguist, musician, and translator whose profound artistic empathy carries the flowing cadences of the Bulgarian language into vivid English. Together, this extraordinary creative duo made history by winning the 2023 International Booker Prizefor Time Shelter—the first book written in Bulgarian to ever receive the honor. Time Shelter is a masterfully dark, funny, and prescient novel. It begins with an enigmatic psychiatrist opening a clinic that treats Alzheimer’s patients by meticulously recreating past decades to match their internal clocks. But the experiment quickly escapes the clinic walls, triggering a pan-European crisis where entire nations hold democratic referendums to choose which era of the past they will retreat into. It is a book that holds up a mirror to our own world, exploring what happens when a civilization faces a deficit of meaning and tries to weaponize nostalgia. (0:00) The Trap of Nostalgia (1:22) The Nonlinear Approach to Storytelling (3:53) Translating the Atmosphere (4:31) The Pandemic of the Past (6:37) Death and the Gardener (9:49) The Translators Calling (11:00) Slowing Down Time (13:14) Storytelling vs Propaganda (15:54) Translating the Atmosphere (18:19) What makes a good life? What has given your life meaning? (20:56) Reflections on God and the Stories His Grandmother Told Him (23:43) The Importance of Hugging, Empathy and Storytelling Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    AI, Algorithms & Preserving the Human Core of Memory with GEORGI GOSPODINOV & ANGELA RODEL - Highlights

  5. Jul 9

    The $7.5 Trillion Gamble on AI Domination & The Future of Humanity w/ NACHO DE GREGORIO

    For over a decade, technology has promised to make life easier. Social media was meant to connect us, we were told smartphones would simplify our lives, and now artificial intelligence promises to lift even more daily burdens. Yet these advances also raise an important question: when do tools enhance human creativity, and when do they replace the very experiences that give life meaning? While AI holds immense promise, many people face challenges coping with current technological advancements that ‘redefine’ human communication, work, education, and democratic values. Today, we examine societal and cultural impacts of AI, identity, inclusion, governance, education, and community well-being. And are speaking with Nacho de Gregorio, author of TheWhiteBox, one of Medium's most-followed AI analysts, for a level-headed conversation about both the remarkable potential and the real limitations of AI. (0:00) The AI compute gap and national security (1:56) The hidden risks of the AI debt bubble (4:40) Separating AI hype from job displacements (12:38) Shadow borrowing and the data center boom (17:19) Europe's missing infrastructure and tech sovereignty (21:52) The Jevons paradox and the demand for compute (26:37) Regulatory capture and doomerism (31:12) Why open source AI is the best path forward (42:19) The chess paradox and the future of human art (46:35) Unmeasurable domains and future-proofing your career (53:45) Tutoring and AI in education (1:01:48) Navigating the AI slop and information ecosystem (1:16:00) Finding beauty in the natural world (1:20:18) The pleasure of waiting vs. the hustle (1:35:01) Setting healthy boundaries with technology Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    The $7.5 Trillion Gamble on AI Domination & The Future of Humanity w/ NACHO DE GREGORIO

  6. May 6

    Architecture, AI & Preserving the Human Core of Expression with SALWA & SELMA MIKOU

    Salwa and Selma Mikou are the founders of Paris-based Mikou Architecture. Born in Fez, Morocco and educated in Paris, they have spent the last two decades reimagining the relationship between the built environment and the cultural landscape. After honing their craft under two of the world’s most iconic architects, Jean Nouvel and Renzo Piano, they founded their own studio. For them, architecture is a living interaction with landscape and what they call the Atlas of Resonance, interpreting the hidden layers of a territory, geology, memory, and craft. It is a philosophy that rejects the generic, seeking instead to weave together technological innovation with local materials. Whether it is a mosque in the north of England or a hybrid innovation hub in a former royal manufactory, their work asks a fundamental question: How does space shape the way we think, learn and remember? They were selected by Rem Koolhaas to represent Morocco at the Venice Biennale. Most recently, they were commissioned by Hermès to create a 17,000-square-meter facility that bridges industrial performance with poetic expression. At the heart of their practice is a belief that architecture is not just about building—it’s about shaping relationships: between people, between past and future, between technology and craft. (0:03) Architecture as a Living Transformation (1:42) The Intuitive Knowledge of Living Art (2:20) Preserving the Human Core of Expression (3:14) The Medina and the Geometry of Childhood (6:35) The Social Spaces of Rooftops (8:27) The Twin Dynamic and Confrontation with 'l'autre' (10:21) Contextual Echoes & Traces of the Site (12:12) The Temples of Water (13:15) The Mosque as Pure Spatiality (15:49) Building Culture with Yves Saint Laurent & Pierre Bergé (16:57) The Wast ed-dar (وسط الدار) and the Heart of a Building (18:31) The Smells and Sounds of Home (19:44) Balance, Nature, and Sisterhood Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    Architecture, AI & Preserving the Human Core of Expression with SALWA & SELMA MIKOU

  7. Apr 18

    Why Do We Listen to the Talkers More Than the Builders Saving the Planet? - Physicist, Designer, Investor TOM CHI - Highlights

    Why does our economy treat environmental destruction as an inevitable side effect rather than a massive design flaw? How can shifting our focus from polarizing "talkers" to practical "builders" literally save the planet? We are repeatedly told that the climate crisis is too vast and volatile to solve, but what if the true obstacle is simply bad design? Tom Chi is a physicist, designer, inventor, and investor whose work has shaped everything from Google Glass and rapid prototyping at Google X to some of the most ambitious climate technologies being built today. He’s now the founding partner of At One Ventures, where he invests in deep-tech companies focused on a bold goal: a world where humanity is a net positive to nature. Tom’s new book, Climate Capital: Investing in the Tools for a Regenerative Future, reframes economics itself—not as a fixed law, but as a design discipline that can be reimagined to align with the physical realities of our planet. Drawing on science, systems thinking, and lessons from nature, the book offers a grounded, practical framework for moving beyond both climate doom and empty optimism—and toward real, regenerative solutions. Today’s conversation is about what Tom calls the 4Cs: Capital, Compassion, Climate, and Community—but also about agency, responsibility, and what becomes possible when we stop treating the future as something that happens to us and start designing it deliberately. 0:00) Build Integrity: Choosing Builders Over Talkers Why prioritizing those who physically create solutions over those who merely debate them is essential for systemic change (1:21) Overcoming Powerlessness Through Creativity, Critical Thinking, Community Compassion Utilizing a specific framework of portable skills to move from climate anxiety into meaningful, iterative action (2:22) Capital Misallocation: Taxing What We Want to See A critique of current tax structures that burden labor while under-taxing capital and failing to serve societal needs (3:47) The Volatility Gap: Why Average Temperatures Mislead Understanding why increasing climate volatility—rather than just average temperature rise—is the true driver of human distress (6:19) Economics As Design: Redesigning The Global Engine Moving beyond "physics envy" in economics to treat the global market as a discipline that can be redesigned for better outcomes (9:11) Depth Over Breadth: Reforming Education Through Experience (13:30) Local Resilience: How Cities Can Lead The Transformation Practical, block-by-block strategies for urban adaptation, from expanding tree canopies to improving household efficiency (16:33) AI and Robotics in Agriculture (19:12) Human-Centric AI: Flipping The Priority Of Automation (20:18) Thinking In Pictures: A Language Beyond Words Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    Why Do We Listen to the Talkers More Than the Builders Saving the Planet? - Physicist, Designer, Investor TOM CHI - Highlights

  8. Apr 18

    Climate Capital with TOM CHI - Google X Co-founder, Founding Partner At One Ventures

    “In the book I spend a bunch of time basically teaching skills and teaching frameworks of thinking. Not to indoctrinate, it's not a framework like an ideology where you need to believe exactly these things. This is a lot more about how does one use their minds effectively to solve problems that have been solved before. Of course, I work on things that have to do with investment and climate and the future of the economy and automation. The main things I'm trying to teach in the book are skills around creativity, critical thinking, community compassion and frameworks around how to go and use that on problems that should be relatively portable to a bunch of problems that are meaningful to you. The way that education needs to change is that people need to actively be working on things that truly matter to them so that over time they end up being able to go make that difference.” Tom Chi is a physicist, designer, inventor, and investor whose work has shaped everything from Google Glass and rapid prototyping at Google X to some of the most ambitious climate technologies being built today. He’s now the founding partner of At One Ventures, where he invests in deep-tech companies focused on a bold goal: a world where humanity is a net positive to nature. Tom’s new book, Climate Capital: Investing in the Tools for a Regenerative Future, reframes economics itself—not as a fixed law, but as a design discipline that can be reimagined to align with the physical realities of our planet. Drawing on science, systems thinking, and lessons from nature, the book offers a grounded, practical framework for moving beyond both climate doom and empty optimism—and toward real, regenerative solutions. Today’s conversation is about what Tom calls the 4Cs: Capital, Compassion, Climate, and Community—but also about agency, responsibility, and what becomes possible when we stop treating the future as something that happens to us and start designing it deliberately. (0:00) Overcoming Powerlessness through Creativity, Critical Thinking, Community Compassion Why broad hopelessness about the future is a purposeful tactic to maintain the status quo. (7:16) How average temperature metrics fail to communicate the true danger of extreme climate volatility. (11:54) Economics as Design (17:11) Multi-disciplinary Learning Centered on Real-World Impact (26:12) Local Resilience (31:15) Tax & Capital Misallocation (36:52) Build Integrity (45:32) AI and Robotics in Agriculture (51:08) The First Honeybee Vaccine (56:11) The Entropy Curve of Pollution (1:15:31) Human-Centric AI Flipping the priority of automation to serve the collective good rather than enriching a select few (1:20:59) Thinking in Pictures How learning to communicate and problem-solve without language fueled a career in deep tech invention Episode Website www.creativeprocess.info/pod Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

    Climate Capital with TOM CHI - Google X Co-founder, Founding Partner At One Ventures
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What are the dangers, risks, and opportunities of AI? What role can we play in designing the future we want to live in? With the rise of automation, what is the future of work? We talk to experts about the roles government, organizations, and individuals can play to make sure powerful technologies truly make the world a better place–for everyone. Conversations with futurists, philosophers, AI experts, scientists, humanists, activists, technologists, policymakers, engineers, science fiction authors, lawyers, designers, artists, among others. The interviews are hosted by founder and creative educator Mia Funk with the participation of students, universities, and collaborators from around the world.

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