Tristan Harris, former Google design ethicist, says the apps we use on our devices everyday are designed to maximize screen time. “Whenever we use these products, we’re activating supercomputers pointed at our brains.” They draw you in and keep you there, he says, and the result is loneliness. Harris, who founded the Center for Humane Technology, talks with Gizmodo’s Kashmir Hill about what we can do limit screen time.

The "Off Stage Series" goes into the issues that impact all of us. These conversations feature presenters at the Aspen Ideas Festival. Off Stage is part of the Aspen Ideas to Go podcast. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Email your comments to [email protected]. The views and opinions of the speakers in the podcast do not necessarily reflect those of the Aspen Institute.

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