From 600+ conversations with the world’s leading thinkers.
Markets are human artefacts; however we often treat them as natural phenomenon in the same way we might treat a language. People are the ones who ultimately make language, but we feel have no control over it as it's such an emergent phenomenon. Markets are emergent phenomenon too, but individual market-places have proprietors and groups of users and therefore markets are more amenable to change. When something isn't working, we can change the rules!
In times of crisis, whether through conflict or nature, it is not an option for us to assist people but an obligation.
Adversity, I believe, is vital. It's the crucible where strength is forged. Without struggle, without battles to face, we remain static, unable to grow.
We take ethics very seriously – and it's important to never fool the user. It must be clear that you are dealing with a digital person, not a real person, and at the same time you cannot create any dependency.
Unlearning silence doesn't mean speaking incessantly—the world is far too noisy for that. Instead, it means understanding the difference between choosing to be silent and having silence imposed upon you. It's recognizing whether silence is additive or oppressive, whether it's reflective and generative or merely detracting. It's about having agency: Do I get to choose when to be silent?
My hope is that the world will come to realise that doing good and doing well are not in opposition, and then effectively can begin to contribute to solving the big challenges we face, environmentally and socially. If I contributed in some small way to making that happen, I'd feel very good about my life.
One of the greatest learnings in my life has been the fact that the sky is really not the limit, after all, there are footprints on the moon. The future of our species will see us travel further, and achieve more, than we could ever predict- so we have to keep our minds open to all possibilities.
The 'Doomers' often anthropomorphize computers by attributing human characteristics to them. While this is an understandable tendency, it's essential to recognize that humans have evolved their competitive nature and occasional violent impulses from survival in a world marked by resource scarcity and competition.
Risk naturally triggers fear—fear of a bad outcome. But using reason to manage risk means applying a more analytical approach, almost like a mathematical assessment of risk and reward. If the odds are against you, how bad is the downside really?
I often have odd conversations where people say, 'Should we take happiness seriously?' And I pause and ask, 'How do you feel about misery and suffering—are those not bad? Do they not matter at all?' Then they admit, 'Oh yeah'. I then ask 'so, don't you think it's good if people enjoy their lives?' And they say, 'I suppose so.' So, everyone agrees happiness matters to some extent – but we often forget this and need to bring it to the surface.
When life gets easy, to feel alive, we need to do something hard.
They help us to understand that there is no 'us' versus 'them', and that 'The Other' is, in fact, my brother, my sister; the other is me.