AITEC Podcast #22 Iain Thomson: Why Heidegger Thought Technology Was More Dangerous Than We Realize
Oct 3, 2025
01:18:16
What if our deepest fears about AI aren't really about the machines at all—but about something we've forgotten about ourselves? In this episode, we speak with philosopher Iain D. Thomson (University of New Mexico), a leading scholar of Martin Heidegger, about his new book Heidegger on Technology’s Danger and Promise in the Age of AI.Together we explore Heidegger’s famous claim that “the essence of technology is nothing technological,” and why today’s crises—from environmental collapse to algorithmic control—are really symptoms of a deeper existential and ontological predicament.Also discussed:
– Why AI may not be dangerous because it’s too smart, but because we stop thinking
– Heidegger’s concept of “world-disclosive beings” and why ChatGPT doesn’t qualify
– How the technological mindset reshapes not just our tools but our selves
– What a “free relation” to technology might look like
– The creeping danger of lowering our standards and mistaking supplements for the real thing
– Why AI may not be dangerous because it’s too smart, but because we stop thinking
– Heidegger’s concept of “world-disclosive beings” and why ChatGPT doesn’t qualify
– How the technological mindset reshapes not just our tools but our selves
– What a “free relation” to technology might look like
– The creeping danger of lowering our standards and mistaking supplements for the real thing
For more info, visit ethicscircle.org.