Intro

Dr. Robert Prentner is a philosopher of mind and consciousness researcher whose work bridges mathematics, phenomenology, information theory, and the foundations of reality. In this episode, he offers a rare deep dive into consciousness as a fundamental feature of the universe, the interface theory of perception, and the radical idea that physics itself may emerge from networks of conscious agents.Consciousness is not just subjective experience. It may be our only window into an underlying structure of reality that is far stranger than space, time, or matter. And understanding that structure could reshape how we think about minds, AI, biology, physics, and the nature of existence itself.Expect to learn why most consciousness researchers quietly converge on “what it is like to be” as their working definition of consciousness, why subjective experience may be far larger than our individual minds, why Prentner thinks a purely physicalist story struggles to explain inner experience, and how the interface theory of perception reframes everything we see as a species-specific user interface rather than a window onto objective reality.Timestamps: 02:30 Defining Consciousness08:25 Conscious Agent Theory Explained14:07 Phenomenal vs Access Consciousness20:05 Materialism vs Fundamental Consciousness25:48 Fitness Beats Truth Theorem31:23 Intuition and Meaning in Consciousness35:56 Exploring Consciousness and Meaning37:53 The Nature of Information in Biology41:04 Information as a Fundamental Concept43:17 Consciousness and Information Theory45:18 The Intersection of Consciousness and Physics49:24 Future of Consciousness and Physics Research52:51 Practical Applications of Consciousness Research54:23 Interface Theory of Perception and Consciousness01:05:13 Exploring the Nature of Time01:10:30 Quantum Entanglement and Reality01:14:40 Conscious AI: Perspectives and Possibilities01:26:26 Biological Properties and Consciousness in AI...❤️ Subscribe to our main channel - https://www.youtube.com/@thegiantsshoulder?sub_confirmation=1💚 Follow on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5m3Gta5MtIYdk59pb2GJ7M?si=Ka2rAQv7TyqiC9wvGwERpA💜 Follow on Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/the-giants-shoulder/id1752486249Check out my first conversation with Robert here: https://youtu.be/U9IzFqNGf40Download my FREE EBook 26 Neuroscience Books for 2026 HERE: https://thegiantsshoulder.com/