AITEC Podcast #15 Stephen Kosslyn: Learning to Flourish in the Age of AI
Jun 5, 2025
Stephen Kosslyn, Professor Emeritus at Harvard and CEO of Active Learning Sciences, explores living well in an AI-driven world. He discusses how generative AI can amplify cognition to help set life goals and enhance communication. The conversation delves into flourishing beyond survival, emphasizing emotional intelligence and human connections. Kosslyn also offers techniques for harnessing AI in goal planning and personal motivation, while highlighting the irreplaceable human element in decision-making and the importance of critical thinking in education.
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Defining Flourishing in Life
- Flourishing requires autonomy, fulfilling relationships, purpose, and personal growth beyond mere survival.
- We realize we're flourishing when progress aligns with our life goals and we sense autonomy and satisfaction.
Humans Better at Open-Ended Contexts
- Humans excel at open-ended, context-rich situations where new unforeseen factors arise.
- Our emotional intuition provides an advantage current AI models lack in handling novel contexts.
AI Interpolates; Humans Extrapolate
- AI excels at interpolating within known patterns but struggles with extrapolating to novel, unforeseen factors.
- Human intuition rooted in emotion helps us navigate pattern-breaking scenarios better than AI currently can.
