Why AI is our ultimate test and greatest invitation
Tristan Harris's latest TED Talk is clarion call to "be part of the collective immune system" against AI's worst potential
There is only one thing that matters this week and it's Tristan Harris's brand new TED Talk, ‘Why AI Is Our Ultimate Test and Greatest Invitation’.
You know Tristan Harris, he was the guy who tried to warn Google how dangerous their technology was so they promoted him to 'Design Ethicist' only he quit after three years of their complete failure to act upon any of his recommendations.
Determined to stick to his mission Tristan co-founded the Centre for Humane Technology but his name came to broad prominence after he appeared in The Social Dilemma, the documentary that revealed the indisputable harms of social media on society (and about which I wrote an op-ed for Marketing Interactive challenging the role of advertisers in funding such platforms here.)
That was five years ago. Now, in 2025 he has unsurprisingly, turned his attention to artificial intelligence and in so doing delivered an impassioned speech that expertly embodies this publication’s creed i.e. he is not anti-tech, he is just pro-human. He doesn’t believe AI can or should be stopped, he does believe it should be tempered, directed and, if necessary, regulated.
The talk is only 15 minutes long so I urge you to please watch it, share it, and become “part of the collective immune system” against AI’s worst potential.
To Do List
My recommendations for new things to read, watch, look at, listen to and do:
First AI learned from humans but now the tables have turned. Victoria Turk explores the impact of AI on how we communicate in her compelling Atlantic article: The Great Language Flattening.
And if we do start sounding and behaving more like AI, how will we tell the difference between it and ourselves? That’s the questions asked in this year’s brilliant Academy Award winning short film from The Netherlands, ‘I’m Not A Robot’:
Speaking of films, throughout May SG arthouse cinema The Projector is running limited screenings of Michael Mann’s iconic ‘Heat’ - the first film to bring De Niro and Pacino together in same scene and one of the greatest heist movies of all time: https://theprojector.sg/films-and-events/heat/
And finally, Wolfgang Van Halen’s (yes, Eddies’ boy!) Mammoth has released a new single with a brilliantly over the top 80s music video tribute to MJ’s Thriller:
Right, that’ll do ya! Cheers, Nx
I will certainly make time to watch! Thanks for the recommendation.