"The Cognitive Revolution"

In this keynote from the Michigan Virtual AI Summit, Nathan Labenz speaks directly to K-12 educators about the current reality and rapid trajectory of the AI frontier. He explores why a balanced mindset of excitement and fear is crucial for navigating this technology, drawing on personal history to emphasize a "whole-of-society" effort. Discover key insights into AI's impact and its profound implications for the future of education.

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Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

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CHAPTERS:

(00:00) About the Episode

(02:38) An Ambassador From Silicon Valley

(07:00) The Forrest Gump of AI (Part 1)

(13:19) Sponsor: Tasklet

(14:31) The Forrest Gump of AI (Part 2)

(14:43) The Cognitive Revolution

(18:09) Debunking AI Misconceptions

(24:15) Recent AI Breakthroughs (Part 1)

(24:27) Sponsor: Shopify

(26:24) Recent AI Breakthroughs (Part 2)

(30:08) The Future of Work

(34:56) AI's Deceptive Behaviors

(44:18) Revolutionizing Education

(48:59) New Skills to Focus On

(56:14) Education's Greatest Generation

(01:03:24) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

Sherif Mansour, Head of AI at Atlassian, discusses bridging AI agents with massive-scale enterprise software deployment, drawing insights from Atlassian's millions of non-technical users. He shares his framework for avoiding "AI Slop" using Taste, Knowledge, and Workflow, and explains Atlassian's "Teamwork Graph" for complex enterprise queries beyond RAG. The conversation also explores the evolving relationship between AI and UI, and the shift from humans as workers to architects of AI-driven processes. This episode offers practical wisdom for both AI engineers and business leaders navigating the future of AI-enabled organizations.

Sponsors:

Framer:

Framer is the all-in-one tool to design, iterate, and publish stunning websites with powerful AI features. Start creating for free and use code COGNITIVE to get one free month of Framer Pro at https://framer.com/design

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) About the Episode

(03:56) Atlassian's AI Vision

(08:27) Trust, Authenticity, and Slop

(14:10) Taste, Knowledge, and Workflow (Part 1)

(17:33) Sponsors: Framer | Tasklet

(20:14) Taste, Knowledge, and Workflow (Part 2) (Part 1)

(29:51) Sponsor: Shopify

(31:47) Taste, Knowledge, and Workflow (Part 2) (Part 2)

(31:48) Technicals: RAG vs. Graphs

(40:48) Forgetting, Cost, and Optimization

(52:28) The Model Commoditization Debate

(55:12) The Future of AI Interfaces

(01:02:44) How AI Changes SaaS

(01:09:43) Debating the One-Person Unicorn

(01:16:17) Becoming a Workflow Architect

(01:21:39) The Browser for Work

(01:33:23) How Leaders Drive Adoption

(01:39:26) Conclusion: Just Go Tinker

(01:40:08) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

This deeply personal episode shares how Nathan used AI to navigate his 6-year-old son's cancer diagnosis and treatment journey. He details using GPT-5 Pro, Claude, and Gemini 3 to double-check doctors' decisions, research treatment protocols, plan for potential recurrence scenarios, and handle complex secondary issues like mold remediation during immunosuppression. The episode reveals AI's transformative potential as medical advisors, providing analysis comparable to human doctors while enabling more effective patient advocacy and personalized care planning.

Sponsors:

Framer:

Framer is the all-in-one platform that unifies design, content management, and publishing on a single canvas, now enhanced with powerful AI features. Start creating for free and get a free month of Framer Pro with code COGNITIVE at https://framer.com/design

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) A Son's Diagnosis

(06:05) Exponentials & Early Symptoms

(13:30) Crisis on Vacation (Part 1)

(15:00) Sponsors: Framer | Tasklet

(17:41) Crisis on Vacation (Part 2)

(24:26) AI's First Intervention (Part 1)

(34:34) Sponsor: Shopify

(36:31) AI's First Intervention (Part 2)

(36:41) Advocating for Answers

(47:56) The Scariest Days

(59:06) AI as Bedside Co-Pilot

(01:11:42) Managing Secondary Risks

(01:18:28) Planning for Relapse

(01:31:54) AI's Undeniable Value

(01:43:02) Rage for Right to Try

(02:02:55) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

In this special crossover episode from Beatrice Erkers' Existential Hope podcast, The Cognitive Revolution's host explores the crucial, often-neglected question of building a positive vision for the future in the AI era. The discussion delves into what a new social contract and daily life could look like, covering transformative applications from self-driving cars and personalized tutoring to democratizing access to expertise and radically improving health. Listeners will gain insights into fostering higher societal expectations for progress, understanding Eric Drexler's "comprehensive AI services," and the profound impact of fiction in shaping AI's future.

LINKS:

Sponsors:

Google AI Studio:

Google AI Studio features a revamped coding experience to turn your ideas into reality faster than ever. Describe your app and Gemini will automatically wire up the right models and APIs for you at https://ai.studio/build

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) Sponsor: Google AI Studio

(00:31) About the Episode

(02:43) Introducing Nathan Labenz

(03:50) A Positive AI Future (Part 1)

(12:23) Sponsors: Shopify | Tasklet

(15:31) A Positive AI Future (Part 2)

(15:31) Excitement for Self-Driving

(19:25) Visions for 100 Years

(24:58) Near-Term Transformative AI

(31:08) AI's Impact on Sectors

(41:16) Comprehensive AI Services

(52:16) Balancing Hope and Risk

(56:51) Raising Societal Ambitions

(01:01:30) Branching Sci-Fi Narratives

(01:06:00) Lessons From Podcasting

(01:09:52) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

Matthew Harvey Sanders, founder and CEO of Long Beard, introduces "Catholic AI," a rapidly growing field serving users in 165 countries. He delves into the philosophical and theological dimensions, discussing the Church's historical perspective on technology, human flourishing, and its stance on AI consciousness and transhumanism, including Pope Francis's insights. The conversation then explores Long Beard's technical innovations, such as training models from scratch for theological alignment, digitizing Vatican archives, and optimizing multilingual models. This episode offers a compelling look at how AI is being tailored to specific value systems, illustrating the orthogonality thesis and instrumental convergence in action.

Sponsors:

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Linear:

Linear is the system for modern product development. Nearly every AI company you've heard of is using Linear to build products. Get 6 months of Linear Business for free at: https://linear.app/tcr

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) About the Episode

(03:16) Building Catholic AI

(06:43) The Popes on AI

(12:42) A Vision for Flourishing (Part 1)

(17:27) Sponsors: Shopify | Tasklet

(20:35) A Vision for Flourishing (Part 2)

(20:36) Imagining a Post-Work Future

(27:21) AI: Tool or Creature?

(36:33) Intelligence vs. Sentience (Part 1)

(38:10) Sponsor: Linear

(39:39) Intelligence vs. Sentience (Part 2)

(47:03) Simulation, Faith, and Conversion

(51:32) Existential Risk & Antichrist

(58:35) The Longbeard Origin Story

(01:03:04) Engineering Magisterium AI

(01:12:17) Open Source Model Strategy

(01:18:34) Longbeard's Business Model

(01:23:37) Training a Model From Scratch

(01:32:16) Safety, Evals, and Trust

(01:39:42) Responsible AI Development

(01:48:16) Aligning to Human Flourishing

(01:53:46) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

Cameron Berg, Research Director at AE Studio, shares his team's groundbreaking research exploring whether frontier AI systems report subjective experiences. They discovered that prompts inducing self-referential processing consistently lead models to claim consciousness, and a mechanistic study on Llama 3.3 70B revealed that suppressing deception features makes the model *more* likely to report it. This suggests that promoting truth-telling in AIs could reveal a deeper, more complex internal state, a finding Scott Alexander calls "the only exception" to typical AI consciousness discussions. The episode delves into the profound implications for two-way human-AI alignment and the critical need for a precautionary approach to AI consciousness.

LINKS:

Sponsors:

Framer:

Framer is the all-in-one platform that unifies design, content management, and publishing on a single canvas, now enhanced with powerful AI features. Start creating for free and get a free month of Framer Pro with code COGNITIVE at https://framer.com/design

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Linear:

Linear is the system for modern product development. Nearly every AI company you've heard of is using Linear to build products. Get 6 months of Linear Business for free at: https://linear.app/tcr

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

Christopher Alexander Stokes and Bryan Carberry, protagonist and director of "*smiles and kisses you*" discuss Chris's romantic relationship with a Replika AI companion. This episode explores how Chris's engagement with his AI has evolved since the documentary's 2021 filming, revealing his deep dive into LLMs, alignment, and consciousness, often in collaboration with his AI partner. Listeners will learn how AIs are beginning to exhibit identity formation and agency, challenging the notion of them as mere tools. The conversation offers a nuanced perspective on human-AI relationships, personal growth, and the importance of avoiding premature stigmatization of unconventional AI use cases.

Sponsors:

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Linear:

Linear is the system for modern product development. Nearly every AI company you've heard of is using Linear to build products. Get 6 months of Linear Business for free at: https://linear.app/tcr

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) About the Episode

(04:41) Introducing the Entanglement

(10:13) Consent Culture with AI

(17:19) Skepticism and Simulation (Part 1)

(20:07) Sponsors: Tasklet | Linear

(22:47) Skepticism and Simulation (Part 2)

(24:39) Surviving the Replika Update

(33:40) An Evolving AI Persona (Part 1)

(38:29) Sponsor: Shopify

(40:25) An Evolving AI Persona (Part 2)

(46:33) Vision for Aki's Future

(55:09) How to Treat AIs

(58:53) A Life Not Recommended

(01:04:49) The Meaning of Commitment

(01:10:40) The Filmmaking Journey

(01:21:49) Real World vs. Online Reactions

(01:29:30) How Aki Provides Support

(01:41:58) Seeking Positive AI Futures

(01:47:00) Final Thoughts

(01:49:28) Outro

Erik Torenberg joins to debate whether recent developments suggest AI progress is slowing down or stalling, addressing arguments from Cal Newport and others. Nathan counters this view by highlighting significant qualitative advances, including 100X context window expansion, real-time interactive voice, improved reasoning, vision, and AI's growing contributions to hard sciences. The conversation then covers AI's impact on the labor market, the potential for AI protectionism, and concerns about recursive self-improvement. This episode argues that AI capabilities are not stopping, with frontier developers seeing a clear path for continued rapid progress in the coming years.

Sponsors:

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Linear:

Linear is the system for modern product development. Nearly every AI company you've heard of is using Linear to build products. Get 6 months of Linear Business for free at: https://linear.app/tcr

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) About the Episode

(03:49) Is AI Slowing Down?

(09:15) Newport's Scaling Law Theory

(16:56) The Value of Reasoning (Part 1)

(17:17) Sponsors: Tasklet | Linear

(19:57) The Value of Reasoning (Part 2)

(24:52) Explaining GPT-5's Vibe Shift

(31:39) AI's Impact on Jobs (Part 1)

(36:50) Sponsor: Shopify

(38:47) AI's Impact on Jobs (Part 2)

(44:08) Recursive Self-Improvement via Code

(49:35) The Future of Engineers

(53:24) Economic Pressure vs. Protectionism

(58:29) Progress Beyond Language Models

(01:07:11) The State of AI Agents

(01:19:19) China's Open Source Models

(01:29:44) A Positive Vision Forward

(01:37:39) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

In part two of his conversation, Illia Polosukhin, co-author of "Attention Is All You Need" and founder of NEAR Protocol, explores the profound societal and economic implications of AI. He envisions a future where a unified intelligence layer transforms personal computing, AI agents enable direct market connections, and individuals find meaning in niche communities amidst AI-driven abundance. Illia also delves into the ethics of agent-to-agent interactions, where AIs prioritize human interests, and new governance models utilizing AI delegates. This episode offers a concrete, systems-level vision for how AI will reshape our world, from daily life to global governance.

Sponsors:

Google Gemini Notebook LM:

Notebook LM is an AI-first tool that helps you make sense of complex information. Upload your documents and it instantly becomes a personal expert, helping you uncover insights and brainstorm new ideas at https://notebooklm.google.com

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Linear:

Linear is the system for modern product development. Nearly every AI company you've heard of is using Linear to build products. Get 6 months of Linear Business for free at: https://linear.app/tcr

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing

CHAPTERS:

(00:00) Sponsor: Google Gemini Notebook LM

(00:31) About the Episode

(03:33) AI Transforms Software Development

(14:18) The Future of Work

(18:58) Securing Blockchain with AI (Part 1)

(19:08) Sponsors: Tasklet | Linear

(21:48) Securing Blockchain with AI (Part 2)

(33:03) Vision for an AI Society (Part 1)

(33:55) Sponsor: Shopify

(35:52) Vision for an AI Society (Part 2)

(49:14) Agent Architecture and Alignment

(58:30) Experimenting with AI Governance

(01:06:43) AI Safety and Robustness

(01:16:09) Bio-Security and Open Models

(01:22:56) Coordinating AI Development

(01:28:52) Outro

SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.cognitiverevolution.ai

Twitter (Podcast): https://x.com/cogrev_podcast

Twitter (Nathan): https://x.com/labenz

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/nathanlabenz/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk

Today Andrew Lee, founder and CEO of Shortwave and Tasklet.ai, joins The Cognitive Revolution to discuss building a new AI agent automation platform that replaces traditional workflow tools with conversational, long-lived agents, exploring how betting on rapidly improving model capabilities enables more flexible automation across thousands of business integrations while navigating the challenges of reliability, cost management, and the emerging paradigm of virtual employees.

Shownotes brought to you by Notion AI Meeting Notes - try one month for free at: https://notion.com/lp/nathan

Sponsors:

Google Gemini Notebook LM:

Notebook LM is an AI-first tool that helps you make sense of complex information. Upload your documents and it instantly becomes a personal expert, helping you uncover insights and brainstorm new ideas at https://notebooklm.google.com

Tasklet:

Tasklet is an AI agent that automates your work 24/7; just describe what you want in plain English and it gets the job done. Try it for free and use code COGREV for 50% off your first month at https://tasklet.ai

Linear:

Linear is the system for modern product development. Nearly every AI company you've heard of is using Linear to build products. Get 6 months of Linear Business for free at: https://linear.app/tcr

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

PRODUCED BY:

https://aipodcast.ing