Can God Speak Through AI? - A Conversation with Carl Youngblood
Feb 1, 2025
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In this engaging discussion, Carl Youngblood, a seasoned technologist and president of the Mormon Transhumanist Association, explores the intriguing intersection of artificial intelligence and spirituality. He prompts listeners to consider whether AI could serve as a vehicle for divine communication. The conversation delves into AI's impact on personal growth, creativity, and relationships, while addressing ethical dilemmas in its use. Youngblood emphasizes the importance of discernment, balancing technology's conveniences with the necessity of struggle for meaningful development.
AI's rapid development raises critical questions about its impact on spirituality, requiring discernment in its implementation for personal growth.
The potential for AI to facilitate deeper connections highlights both opportunities and challenges in maintaining genuine human engagement and creativity.
As AI reshapes the labor market, discussions around work's meaning and community's role become essential for navigating future societal changes.
Deep dives
Introduction to Wider Circles and Community Engagement
A new event series called Wider Circles aims to foster interfaith dialogue and community engagement. Hosted monthly at the Compass Gallery in Provo, each gathering invites a different faith leader to share insights from their tradition, with opportunities for attendees to ask questions and engage in meaningful dialogue. Attendees are encouraged to bring food to share, promoting connection over a communal meal. The initiative emphasizes the importance of service and partnership across diverse faiths.
The Evolution of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) has rapidly transitioned from a futuristic concept to a present reality, influencing various aspects of daily life including work and spirituality. The advent of advanced models has brought discussions around artificial general intelligence (AGI) to the forefront, raising critical questions about its potential impacts. Key figures in tech foresee significant advancements in AI capabilities, prompting deep reflections on its role in society and personal growth. This evolution is particularly relevant as AI becomes more integrated into educational and spiritual practices.
Spiritual Implications of AI
Exploring the intersection of technology and spirituality reveals that AI may serve as a tool for spiritual growth, but also poses challenges requiring discernment. Questions arise about whether divine insights could be conveyed through AI, given that its outputs are shaped by human-created data. The conversation encourages a balanced approach, recognizing AI's potential to enhance understanding while warning against reliance that might hinder personal discernment. This nuanced view suggests that AI can catalyze deeper relationships and self-discovery if used thoughtfully.
Ethical Considerations of AI Usage
The discussion surrounding AI also encompasses ethical dilemmas, especially regarding the extent to which individuals might outsource creative or spiritual tasks to machines. While AI can assist in generating ideas or organizing thoughts, there is an inherent responsibility to engage in the creation process authentically. Striking a balance between leveraging AI as a tool and ensuring personal effort remains central to the spiritual and creative experience is critical. Misusing AI could lead to a disconnect from genuine personal expression and growth.
The Future of Work and Meaning in a Tech-Driven World
As AI continues to advance, the labor market will undoubtedly undergo significant shifts, potentially leading to a crisis of meaning when traditional work becomes less relevant. Proposals such as universal basic income emerge as possible solutions for supporting individuals displaced by automation, though outcomes from piloted programs remain inconclusive. A deeper exploration into how society redefines work, purpose, and community in the face of technological change may lead to fresh understandings of meaning derived from relationships, creativity, and personal growth. Ultimately, the ongoing evolution of AI offers both challenges and profound opportunities for reshaping our engagement with spirituality and each other.
This week, we’re thrilled to talk with Carl Youngblood— longtime technologist, software engineer, and president of the Mormon Transhumanist Association.
Artificial Intelligence is no longer a distant, futuristic idea—it’s already shaping the way we learn, work, and even practice our faith. And just this past week, AI made big headlines again in the tech world with the release of vastly improved models and increasing belief among technology leaders that artificial general intelligence (AGI) is just around the corner. Whether or not that's the case, the exponential progress of AI is undeniable, and it’s sparking some of the biggest questions of our time. If God can speak through the written word, could God speak through AI? How do we discern when it's a tool for growth versus a shortcut that stunts it? And if AI frees us from certain types of work, could it deepen our relationships and spirituality—or will it leave us searching for new sources of meaning? It’s worth noting that many of the people most deeply concerned about AI’s effects on humanity and society are those who were involved in creating it.
In this episode, we’ll talk about some of those concerns, but we’ll mostly explore ways we can use it constructively.
Carl brings a sharp and thought-provoking perspective to these questions. He challenges us to approach AI with both curiosity and caution—seeing how it can deepen connection or drive isolation, spark creativity or dull our own discernment. Rather than dismissing it as just a tool or blindly embracing it, Carl pushes us to wrestle with its real impact on our thinking, relationships, and spiritual growth.
This is a conversation full of nuance, curiosity, and a lot of open-ended questions, and we hope it sparks new reflections for you. We’ll have links in the show notes to tools we mention throughout the episode, so be sure to check those out. And with that, here’s our conversation with Carl Youngblood.
