Ayush Prakash Podcast

Who decides how AI research gets used? Matthew E. Taylor says that despite helping develop the technology, he often feels powerless over its eventual applications. Companies and governments can shape outcomes that individual researchers have little ability to control.

Matthew is a professor of Computing Science at the University of Alberta and directs the Intelligent Robot Learning Lab. We discuss what human-centred AI should mean, why explainability and auditability matter, and who benefits when a system is built around someone else’s priorities.

He describes his work with disinformation researchers, the practical difficulties of making robots commercially useful, and his personal refusal to work on AI weapons. We also explore whether researchers could restrict how their ideas are used, why open science complicates that question, and what automated scientists might miss when choosing worthwhile problems.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction: AI research and adoption in Alberta
01:57 What does AI safety mean?
03:12 Human-centred AI: who benefits?
05:31 Watching AI become a global obsession
09:11 What happens after the AI rush?
14:13 Protecting fundamental research
18:49 Foreign influence and disinformation in Canada
21:27 AI tools for disinformation researchers
24:03 Why AI research extends beyond AGI
26:08 Research ethics and weapons
30:02 Why robots are always “almost here”
31:44 Making robots commercially useful
34:56 Automation and the future of work
37:03 Who controls research after it leaves the lab?
42:53 Can AI recognise worthwhile research?
44:01 Housing, hope and where to follow Matthew

Connect with Matthew:

Website: https://drmatttaylor.net/
Research lab: https://irll.ca/
University profile: https://apps.ualberta.ca/directory/person/mtaylor3
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewedmundtaylor/

Podcast Info:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:

Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:

AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

For this episode, I'm joined by Rick Tumlinson, co-founder of the Space Frontier Foundation and one of the most influential figures in the commercial space industry. 

In this episode, we slice the conversation into four categories: the social history of the space movement and how we got here; the business of space and the astropolitics shaping who controls the final frontier; the genetics and ethics of humanity becoming a multi-planetary species; and the deeper philosophy of why leaving Earth isn't just raw and blind ambition but something closer to destiny (for some people).

Timestamps: 

0:00 Social History

30:19 Business and Astropolitics

45:20 Genetics and Ethics

56:02 Philosophical 

Connect with Rick: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricktumlinson/

Website: https://www.ricktumlinson.com

Book: https://www.amazon.com/Why-Space-Purpose-Rick-Tumlinson/dp/B0G2HQ1T8J

Podcast Info: 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3qXL37W

Connect: 

Website: https://ayushprakash.com 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/ 

Instagram: instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books: 

AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

What gets overlooked when “AI” becomes another word for ChatGPT? Alex Hernández-García argues that the focus on chatbots draws attention and resources away from other research, including tools designed for specific scientific problems.

Alex is an assistant professor at the Université de Montréal and a core academic member at Mila. He explains his work on machine learning for materials and antibiotic discovery, how researchers explore enormous spaces of possible molecules, and why progress depends on close collaboration with chemists and biologists. We also discuss his contribution to This Climate Does Not Exist, a project that visualises climate impacts at familiar locations.

The conversation covers how regulation could direct innovation, the environmental costs of AI, privacy and data control, and his case for open science despite the risk of misuse. We finish by questioning what AGI is supposed to mean, considering intelligence in the natural world, and asking whether every social problem needs another technological solution.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction: why AI has come to mean chatbots
04:08 How the LLM boom shapes research funding
07:07 When should AI regulation begin?
11:15 Can regulation encourage innovation?
15:57 AI’s environmental costs and data control
19:06 Making climate change visible
22:28 Searching for new materials and antibiotics
26:33 How research becomes a real-world application
29:54 Open science and the risk of misuse
33:29 What does AGI actually mean?
35:37 Intelligence, control and the natural world
40:38 Does every problem need more technology?
42:20 Advice for young people and reading
43:47 Stopping wars and finding hope
45:09 Where to follow Alex

Connect with Alex:

Website: https://alexhernandezgarcia.com/
Mila profile: https://mila.quebec/en/directory/alex-hernandez-garcia-0
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/alexhergar.bsky.social
This Climate Does Not Exist: https://thisclimatedoesnotexist.com/

Podcast Info:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:

Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:

AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

Can the infrastructure behind AI keep up with the promises being made for it? Alistair Alexander argues that the expansion of data centres faces limits in electricity, materials and financing, with consequences far beyond the technology industry.

Alistair researches the social and ecological impacts of technology and writes Reclaimed Systems. We discuss his concerns about power demand, gas generation, semiconductor supply chains, critical minerals and the communities affected by extraction. He also explains why he sees interconnected financing deals and synthetic training data as sources of risk. His predictions are presented as his assessment, not certain outcomes.

The conversation then turns to why Silicon Valley keeps pursuing AGI, what gets lost when intelligence is reduced to measurable tasks, and how we can regain control over our relationship with technology. We finish with his case for smaller, less resource-intensive tools, human connection, and acting without knowing how things will turn out.

Chapters:
00:00 Introduction: the bet on AI
06:59 What runs out first?
11:24 Data centres, gas and the power supply
15:05 Financing risks and a possible domino effect
17:25 Synthetic data and model collapse
19:33 AI, geopolitics and the chip supply chain
24:57 Critical minerals and the costs of extraction
29:27 Why pursue AGI?
33:39 Silicon Valley’s search for growth
39:54 Taking back control of technology
47:42 Living within planetary limits
49:44 What do we mean by intelligence?
56:38 Embodiment, emotion and machine intelligence
1:00:34 Hope, solidarity and action
1:03:26 Where to follow Alistair

Connect with Alistair:
Reclaimed Systems newsletter: https://reclaimedsystems.substack.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alistair-alexander-4a488170/
Research profile: https://futureobservatory.org/research/network/alistair-alexander

Podcast Info:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:
Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:
AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

What happens when a culture tries to eliminate uncertainty? Clinical health psychologist David Alter argues that doubt, humility and curiosity are necessary for perception, learning and meaningful change. Without them, identity hardens into certainty and chaos loses any connection to a better future.

David has spent more than three decades working at the intersection of mind, brain, body and relationships. We discuss why narratives reinforce group identity, how betrayal can turn loyalty into rage, and why being willing to say “I might be wrong” is a demanding cognitive skill.

The conversation then turns to artificial intelligence, consciousness and simulated empathy. David explains why he sees a qualitative difference between an AI response and human connection, then makes the case for play, art, music, failure and nature in education. We finish with trust, perseverance, learning from unfamiliar cultures and a form of hope that does not require the world to repair itself within one lifetime.

Chapters:
00:00 Why surprise and expectation coexist
03:57 Language, narrative and identity
06:06 Tribes, loyalty and betrayal
09:03 Humility as a cognitive skill
13:31 Why uncertainty keeps the mind adaptive
18:22 Destructive chaos versus creative chaos
21:00 Risk and unintended consequences
23:50 Consciousness, empathy and the limits of AI
26:24 Do we want a simulated world?
29:56 Play and the qualitative difference of being human
33:42 The social purpose of education
36:25 Making room for mystery in the curriculum
38:59 Trust, failure and distress tolerance
42:39 Can technology cultivate perseverance?
45:51 What nature teaches that devices cannot
49:01 Awe, vulnerability and creativity
50:40 Learning from cultures we do not understand
51:46 Why David still has hope
53:35 Where to follow David

Connect with David Alter:
Website: https://drdavidalter.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidalter

Podcast Info:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:
Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:
AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

What makes a chatbot seem intelligent, and what happens when a generation grows up treating digital systems as part of its social world? Karl Friston argues that generative AI holds up a convincing mirror to human expression, but lacks the embodied life behind the reflection.

Karl Friston is Professor of Neuroscience at University College London and is known for the free energy principle and active inference. In this unusual reverse interview, Karl questions me about AI for Gen Z and the first generation to grow up inside digital technology.

We discuss why people anthropomorphize chatbots, the emerging research questions around mental health, and how social media changes identity, status and attention. The conversation moves through the path of least action, the physical cost of convenience, embodied cognition, echo chambers and cognitive behavioural therapy. We finish with Karl’s case for curiosity, testing our beliefs and keeping our options open.

Chapters:
00:00 Generative AI and the changing idea of intelligence
03:40 Why chatbots feel human
07:10 Machine welfare and the risks of projection
09:52 Mental health and machine psychosis
14:26 Karl Friston reads AI for Gen Z
16:08 Influence, identity and too much choice
23:07 The path of least action
27:01 A finite biosphere and an expanding technosphere
31:09 Likes, citations and evidence that we matter
35:03 Embodiment, eye contact and the sense of self
37:28 Extended cognition and the designed environment
39:43 The mirror with nothing behind it
44:33 Can Gen Z recover skills it never learned?
50:45 Adaptability and selection for selectability
58:19 Escaping echo chambers by testing our beliefs
1:07:44 Keep your options open
1:10:17 Hope in the next generation

Connect with Karl Friston:
UCL research profile and selected papers: https://www.fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk/~karl/

Podcast Info:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:
Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:
AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

What happens if AI and robotics eliminate most paid work? Futurist Zoltan Istvan argues that society will need a universal basic income, a new relationship with leisure and a serious debate about who benefits from automation.

We discuss his campaign for California governor, why he expects AI to challenge both white-collar and physical work, and whether society will accept machine decisions when even rare errors carry serious consequences. Zoltan also explains why digital avatars may be useful while raising difficult questions about authenticity and human choice.

The conversation then turns to transhumanism, neural implants, radical life extension and the prospect of overcoming biological death. We finish with superintelligence risk, free public education, generational pressure and the seven-year sailing journey that shaped Zoltan's life. This interview was recorded while Zoltan was campaigning for governor; he suspended that campaign on February 24, 2026.

Chapters:
00:00 What being human means
00:59 Campaigning for California governor
03:30 Technology and the younger generation
05:47 Universal basic income after automation
09:11 Has automation been overpredicted?
12:46 Avatars, authenticity and anti-AI backlash
15:43 What is transhumanism?
17:37 Can humanity overcome biological death?
20:19 Social division and superintelligence risk
23:00 The first problem Zoltan would solve
24:30 College, childcare and generational pressure
27:21 Why young people should travel
29:54 Where to follow Zoltan

Connect with Zoltan Istvan:
Website: https://zoltanistvan.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoltan-istvan-78aa2964/
Campaign archive: https://www.zoltanistvan2026.com/

Podcast Info:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:
Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:
AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

Shashank Tiwari thinks AI will move faster in 2026 while facing a harder question: what is any of it actually for? The co-founder and CEO of Uno AI expects stronger models, more open-source competition and faster product cycles, followed by pressure to prove measurable value.

We discuss what large enterprises are saying about AI away from the headlines. Shashank describes a more cautious picture than a frantic race to automate: executives want productivity and new capabilities, but they also need reliability, regulatory compliance and clear limits on risk.

The conversation then moves from business to society. What happens to young workers when AI devalues skills they spent years building? Can AI make thinking feel unnecessary? Should it become a companion? We finish by examining how convenience, incentives and repeated success can turn AI use into dependence.

Chapters:
00:00 Returning for the final episode of 2025
00:35 What Shashank got right about 2025
02:29 Why open source caught up faster
03:19 What Uno AI builds
06:19 Why 2026 may accelerate and plateau
08:52 AI-assisted coding goes mainstream
12:33 What enterprises really want from AI
16:44 Regulation, risk and checks and balances
20:12 Is AI making us mentally numb?
23:20 What the organization of the future looks like
25:39 Could AI reverse economic democratization?
30:23 What should AI be for humans?
34:34 AI friendship and emotional substitution
36:04 Conflict, displacement and young workers
39:32 Is AI use becoming addictive?

Connect with Shashank Tiwari:
Uno AI: https://www.uno.ai/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tshanky

Podcast Info:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ayush-prakash-podcast/id1557703631

Connect:
Website: https://ayushprakash.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books:
AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

What happens when the internet makes culture instantly accessible while stripping away the context that gives it meaning? Digital anthropologist Giles Crouch argues that online exchange can spread ideas quickly, but it cannot reproduce the embodied experience through which people understand a culture.

We discuss how the internet became an ambient part of everyday life, why platform incentives reward division and what memes remove from complex political arguments. Giles also explains how cultures resist and absorb unfamiliar technologies, and why genetic engineering could create new social divisions.

The conversation then turns to large language models as cognitive scaffolding, why people form relationships with conversational AI and whether these systems can think or reason. We finish with critical thinking, art and imagined futures, climate change, and Giles’s advice to young people living through technological change.

Chapters:

00:00 What digital anthropology studies

02:20 From cyberspace to a phygital world

06:32 When technology becomes invisible

13:09 Why platforms reward division

17:52 Culture without embodied experience

25:13 Memes, polarization and critical thinking

31:56 How cultures absorb new technology

36:33 Genetic engineering and unequal futures

41:51 No technology is inevitable

47:10 What large language models can and cannot do

51:01 Why people form relationships with AI

54:00 Can critical thinking scale?

56:37 Art, storytelling and imagined futures

59:23 The limits of digital futurism

01:01:53 Advice for young people

01:03:15 What gives Giles hope

01:04:49 Where to find Giles

Connect with Giles: 

Website: https://www.gilescrouch.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gileswcrouch/

Podcast Info: 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3qXL37W

Connect: 

Website: https://ayushprakash.com 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/ 

Instagram: instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books: 

AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135

What if clairvoyance is less about predicting the future and more about noticing what the rational mind misses? Alexandra Goldwell explains how meditation, yoga and counselling led her to trust intuitive impressions, why she describes that experience as accessing a pure self and what it took to develop those skills without losing her judgment.

We discuss why language such as energy, intuition and spirituality makes people uneasy, whether modern society understands the inner life as well as the external world and why honest self-examination can feel threatening. Alexandra also reflects on the faith and curiosity that shaped her questions about suffering, purpose and consciousness.

The conversation then turns to children, social conditioning and the fear of unusual abilities. Alexandra argues that children begin with greater openness, while adults must work through accumulated assumptions. We finish by examining power, privacy, ego and the ethical responsibility that comes with believing you can perceive what another person cannot.

Chapters:

00:00 What clairvoyance means to Alexandra

00:58 How she developed intuitive skills

04:11 Subconscious, superconscious and the pure self

05:07 Science, spirituality and self-understanding

07:11 External progress versus inner knowledge

08:49 Finding the courage to look inward

10:43 Children, conditioning and intuition

13:20 Why the unknown creates fear

15:07 Ego, ethics and the danger of power

Connect with Alexandra: 

Website: https://www.alexandragoldwell.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/askalexandra/

Podcast Info: 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ILhje5HSua1FEOlTyFAhG

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3qXL37W

Connect: 

Website: https://ayushprakash.com 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-ayush/ 

Instagram: instagram.com/ayushprakashofficial

Books: 

AI for Gen Z: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981182135