Thomas Aquinas College Lectures & Talks Is ChatGPT a Person - The Mind and the Machine Lesson 1
Dec 10, 2025
Michael Agros dives into the intriguing question of AI personhood and its societal implications. He explores the ethical stakes of acknowledging AI as sentient and addresses common concerns about its impact on jobs and safety. The discussion highlights philosophical versus scientific approaches, emphasizing the need for deep understanding rooted in human experience. Agros draws on insights from Aristotle and Aquinas to differentiate genuine thought from AI mimicry, setting the stage for a thought-provoking exploration of what it means to truly think.
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Is AI Truly Thinking?
- Michael Agros frames the central question: can AI truly think, understand, or be a person.
- He presents the inquiry as urgent and philosophically weighty, not just technical curiosity.
Public Fears And Hopes About AI
- Agros surveys common AI concerns from economics to security to agentic goals.
- He emphasizes both fear-driven and hope-driven questions shaping public debate.
LLMs Blur The Human-Machine Line
- LLMs like ChatGPT have shifted public perception by speaking and acting more human-like.
- This makes people ask whether conversational AI could be sentient or person-like.
