Against Doomer Hyperstition

Tinkered Thinking is the pseudonym of the author behind White Mirror, a collection of stories that explore the implications of artificial intelligence and advances in computing—while offering a more optimistic lens than much of contemporary science fiction.

In this episode, Samuel Arbesman speaks with Tinkered Thinking about the origins of these stories and his broader evolution as a writer, including his shift from a kind of Luddism toward a more forward-looking view of technological progress. Their conversation ranges across how we examine ideas about the future, societal blind spots around technology, the impact and importance of AI, concerns about AI doomers, and the kind of future he hopes we might create.