Artificial intelligence is clearly going to change our lives in multiple ways. But it’s not yet obvious exactly how, and what the impacts will be. We can predict that certain jobs held by humans will probably be taken over by computers, but what about our thoughts? Will we still think and create in the same ways? Author and former Aspen Institute president Walter Isaacson has been writing biographies about big thinkers and innovators for decades, including Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin and Jennifer Doudna. Isaacson returned to the world of technology for his most recent book on Elon Musk. Journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin interviews Isaacson on stage at the Aspen Ideas Festival about whether a society fully integrated with AI can foster the same qualities shared by many influential people. Will A.I. augment the best that humans have to offer, or will it compete with or even degrade human intelligence? And are there some traits that technology just will never be able to replicate, like empathy and compassion? aspenideas.org

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