Socrates UK 2020 Salon
Held in partnership with the Aspen Initiative UK, the Socrates UK Seminar will take place from January 24 to January 25, 2020. This Socrates international salon will include three sessions, program meals, and local excursions/tours.
Confronting the Machine: Human Questions in the Age of AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a radically changing life on earth. Everything we do, from raising families to running businesses to governing huge societies is being reshaped by these technologies. In this special one-day Aspen Seminar [can we say Aspen Socrates?] Salon, we’ll delve into the political, economic and social implications of AI’s growing power, and assess whether we are still in control of our professional and private lives. For historical and cultural context, we’ll consider the hopes and fears engendered by modern technologies since their emergence in the 20th century. We’ll examine the rise over the last few decades of what some are calling “surveillance capitalism” as the dominant tech business model, and its impact on our attention, creativity, personal relationships, and freedom. We’ll also reflect on the humanistic questions that these technologies are bringing to the fore. Some worry that we’re losing touch with the values that gave rise to civilization in the first place and have inspired all social and cultural progress. Are we on the path to a better world or have we gone down a dark alley?
Moderated by Bill Powers , Research Scientist at MIT Media Lab and best-selling author of Hamlet’s Blackberry.