Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Greg Epstein, American Humanist chaplain at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and author of the great new book Tech Agnostic: How Technology Became the World’s Most Powerful Religion, and Why It Desperately Needs a Reformation. We discuss:* How tech is becoming a religion, and why it’s connected to our belief that we’re never enough.* How Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Bill Gates are hungry ghosts. * What ‘tech-as-religion’ allows us to see and understand that ‘capitalism-as-religion’ doesn’t.* My concerns with the metaphor and Greg’s thoughtful response.* How we might usher in a tech reformation, and the tech humanists leading the way.* The value of agnosticism and not-knowing when it comes to tech.Okay, that’s it for now,Charley This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit untangled.substack.com/subscribe
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42:37
Can we democratize AI?
Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Divya Siddarth, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Collective Intelligence Project (CIP) about how we might democratize the development and governance of AI. We discuss:* The CIP’s work on alignment assemblies with Anthropic and OpenAI — what they’ve learned, and why in the world a company would agree to increasing public participation.* The #1 risk of AI as ranked by the public. (Sneak peek: it has nothing to do with rogue robots.)* Are participatory processes good enough to bind companies to the decisions they generate? * How we need to fundamentally change our conception of ‘AI expertise.’* How worker and public participation can shift the short-term thinking and incentives driving corporate America.* Should AI companies become direct democracies or representative ones? * How Divya would structure public participation if she had a blank sheet of paper and if AI companies had to adopt the recommendations.That’s it for now,Charley This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit untangled.substack.com/subscribe
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35:29
Building healthy local communities online & off
Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Deepti Doshi, Co-Director of New_Public about what they’ve learned building local healthy communities, online and off. We discuss:* The problem New_Public is trying to address with their initiative, Local Lab. (Which I highlighted in my recent essay, “Fragment the media! Embrace the shards!”)* What Deepti has learned about what makes for pro-social conversations that build community on messaging boards and private groups.* Why it’s an oxymoron to call Twitter a ‘global town square’ and the relationship between scale and trustworthy information ecosystems.* The importance of ‘digital stewards’ in facilitating online community.* How the social capital people build online is translating into IRL actions and civic engagement.* What a future might look like if New_Public realizes the vision of Local Lab.That’s it for now,Charley This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit untangled.substack.com/subscribe
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29:55
Block, build, be
This week, I’m sharing my conversation with Anya Kamenetz, the creator of The Golden Hour, a newsletter about “thriving and caring for others on a rapidly changing planet. Anya and I announced a new partnership recently — now, when you sign up for an annual paid subscription to Untangled, you’ll get free access to the paid version of The Golden Hour — and we wanted to talk about it, and the work ahead.Along the way, we also discuss:* How we’re adapting our newsletters in response to the election.* Why mitigating harms isn’t sufficient, and a framework that can help us all orient to the present moment: block, build, be.* How we consume information — our mindsets, habits, and practices — and also, why ‘consume’ isn’t the right frame. * The difference between social media connections and email-based relationships.* How to talk to your kids about the election.* The fragmentation of the news media environment and why it’s a good thing.I couldn’t be more excited to partner with Anya and introduce you to her work. Enjoy!More soon,Charley This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit untangled.substack.com/subscribe
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31:36
Is AI snake oil?
Hi, I’m Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about our sociotechnical world, and how to change it.* Come work with me! The initiative I lead at Data & Society is hiring for a Community Manager. Learn more here.* Check out my new course, Sociotechnical Systems Change in Practice. The first cohort will take place on January 11 and 12, and you can sign up here.* Last week I interviewed Mozilla’s Jasmine Sun and Nik Marda on the potential of public AI, and the week prior I shared my conversation with AI reporter Karen Hao on OpenAI’s mythology, Meta’s secret, and Microsoft’s hypocrisy.🚨 This is your last chance to get Untangled 40 percent off. Even better, I partnered with Anya Kamenetz to offer you her great newsletter The Golden Hour for free! Signing up for Untangled right now means you’ll get $140 in value for $54.On to the show!This week I spoke with Arvind Narayanan, professor of computer science at Princeton University and director of its Center for Information Technology Policy. I spoke with Arvind about his great new book with Sayash Kapoor, AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What it Can’t, and How to Tell the Difference. We discuss:* The difference between generative AI and predictive AI, and why we’re both more concerned by the latter.* Whether generative AI systems can ‘understand’ and ‘reason.’* The difference between intelligence and power and why Arvind isn’t so concerned by the supposed existential threats of AI.* Why artificial intelligence appeals to broken institutions.* How Arvind would change AI discourse.* How technical and social experts misunderstand one another.* What a Trump second term means for AI regulation.* What excites Arvind about how his children will experience new technologies, and what makes him nervous.More soon,Charley This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit untangled.substack.com/subscribe
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