Think Biblically: Conversations on Faith & Culture

The AI Revolution: Expert Roundtable

Dec 16, 2025

Guest

Mihretu P. Guta

Join experts Yohan Lee, a tech innovator and former AI executive, Michael Arena, a business leader specializing in AI applications, and Mihretu Guta, a philosopher delving into consciousness and AI ethics. They discuss how AI transforms language translation, raises workplace efficiency, and shapes business dynamics. The panel also addresses the ethical implications of AI, including job displacement, misinformation, and the risks of dehumanization. With insights on biblical stewardship and the integration of faith in technology, this conversation navigates the complex landscape of AI's future.

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INSIGHT

AI Is Expanding Computer Science

Yohan Lee says AI expanded computer science and demands deeper math and physics knowledge from students.
He predicts rapid progress and wonders where AI will be in six months to six years.

INSIGHT

Translation Shows AI's Real Power

Yohan Lee highlights machine translation as a transformative AI success, enabling sophisticated cross-language work.
He notes limitations for low-resource languages and the corpus needed for accurate translation.

ADVICE

Teach AI Literacy To Shorten Onboarding

Michael Arena argues AI rapidly uplifts novices to median competence and shortens onboarding from years to months.
He recommends organizations teach AI literacy so employees become productive sooner.

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It is not an understatement to say that AI has revolutionized virtually every aspect of human life. What should characterize a Christian posture towards AI? Should we be concerned? Optimistic? How do we think biblically about it the emergence of new AI technology? In this unique episode, Sean is joined by three Biola/Talbot professors who are experts in their fields and in AI: Yohan Lee, Associate Dean of Technology and Professor of Computer Science; Michael Arena, Dean of Biola’s Crowell School of Business; and Mihretu Guta, Professor of Philosophy and Apologetics.

Mihretu P. Guta, Ph.D. (Philosophy at Durham University, UK). After completing his Ph.D., he worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Durham University within the Durham Emergence Project which was set up with cooperation between physicists and philosophers and funded by the John Templeton Foundation. Guta’s postdoctoral research focused on the nature of the emergence of the phenomenal consciousness taken from the standpoint of metaphysics, philosophy of mind, cognitive neuroscience and quantum physics.

Dr. Yohan Lee has led advanced technology organizations for over 20 years in commercial industry, education, and government. He has been privileged to serve as a civil scientist (U.S. National Institutes of Health), Principal Investigator (Google AI), Chief Science Officer (Riiid Labs, Inc.), and CEO (Scaled Entelechy, Inc). His undergraduate and doctoral studies were at UCLA in neuroscience and genomics with a focus on the neurological basis of learning and memory in addition to precision medicine. His doctoral work centered on large scale genomic data for health and distributed computing. In his corporate role, Dr. Lee has led research and business units in industry, public-private partnerships, the federal government, and international academic consortia for enterprise initiatives with Fortune 50 corporations.

Michael Arena, Ph.D., is the dean of the Crowell School of Business at Biola University. He is also the chief science officer and co-founder of the Connected Commons, a research consortium that brings together business and academic thought leaders to develop and apply organizational network solutions. Prior to joining Biola, he served as the vice president of talent and development at Amazon Web Services (AWS), where he leveraged network analysis to enable employee growth, organizational culture and innovation. Arena was also the chief talent officer for General Motors Corporation where he helped to facilitate a business transformation, which is highlighted in his book Adaptive Space. Arena also spent two years as a visiting scientist with MIT’s Media Lab researching human networks and acted as a design thinking coach within the Stanford School for three years.

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Think Biblically: Conversations on Faith and Culture is a podcast from Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, which offers degrees both online and on campus in Southern California.

Find all episodes of Think Biblically at: https://www.biola.edu/think-biblically.

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