AI and the Question of the Human

For centuries philosophy has asked what reason is, what a mind is, and what makes a person a person.

Now we build systems that write, compose, argue, diagnose, persuade, and imitate creativity — sometimes more fluently than we do. But do they understand anything? Or do they instead force us to confront how little we understand ourselves?

Rather than focusing on technical details, this meetup asks what AI reveals about human life and society.
We will explore questions such as:
Human Identity

• If thinking can be automated, what remains uniquely human?
• Is intelligence just pattern-recognition, or something irreducibly personal?
• Does interacting with AI change how we relate to other people — or to ourselves?

Social Life

• Will AI deepen loneliness or alleviate it?
• What happens to trust when texts, images, and voices can be generated at will?
• Do we begin treating humans more like machines — or machines more like humans?

Work and Wealth

• Who benefits economically from AI systems?
• Does automation liberate workers — or concentrate power and wealth further?
• What happens to meaning and dignity if large parts of cognitive labor disappear?

Politics and Responsibility

• Who is accountable for AI-driven decisions?
• Can democratic societies function in an era of automated persuasion and misinformation?
• Does political power shift toward those who control data and computation?

Environment

• What are the ecological costs of energy-intensive AI systems?
• Is technological acceleration compatible with sustainability?
• How should we weigh innovation against long-term planetary responsibility?

No technical expertise is required. This is not a coding session — it is a space to think carefully about who we are becoming.
Come ready to question not only machines, but ourselves.

Description by ChatGPT