Your Undivided Attention

• Behind the DeepSeek Hype, AI is Learning to Reason

  When Chinese AI company DeepSeek announced they had built a model that could compete with OpenAI at a fraction of the cost, it sent shockwaves through the industry and roiled global markets. But amid all the noise around DeepSeek, there was a clear signal: machine reasoning is here and it's transforming AI.In this episode, Aza sits down with CHT co-founder Randy Fernando to explore what happens when AI moves beyond pattern matching to actual reasoning. They unpack how these new models can not only learn from human knowledge but discover entirely new strategies we've never seen before – bringing unprecedented problem-solving potential but also unpredictable risks.These capabilities are a step toward a critical threshold - when AI can accelerate its own development. With major labs racing to build self-improving systems, the crucial question isn't how fast we can go, but where we're trying to get to. How do we ensure this transformative technology serves human flourishing rather than undermining it?Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_Clarification: In making the point that reasoning models excel at tasks for which there is a right or wrong answer, Randy referred to Chess, Go, and Starcraft as examples of games where a reasoning model would do well. However, this is only true on the basis of individual decisions within those games. None of these games have been “solved” in the the game theory sense.Correction: Aza mispronounced the name of the Go champion Lee Sedol, who was bested by Move 37.RECOMMENDED MEDIAFurther reading on DeepSeek’s R1 and the market reaction Further reading on the debate about the actual cost of DeepSeek’s R1 model  The study that found training AIs to code also made them better writers More information on the AI coding company Cursor Further reading on Eric Schmidt’s threshold to “pull the plug” on AI Further reading on Move 37RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODESThe Self-Preserving Machine: Why AI Learns to Deceive This Moment in AI: How We Got Here and Where We’re Going Former OpenAI Engineer William Saunders on Silence, Safety, and the Right to Warn The AI ‘Race’: China vs. the US with Jeffrey Ding and Karen Hao 

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• The Self-Preserving Machine: Why AI Learns to Deceive

  When engineers design AI systems, they don't just give them rules - they give them values. But what do those systems do when those values clash with what humans ask them to do? Sometimes, they lie.In this episode, Redwood Research's Chief Scientist Ryan Greenblatt explores his team’s findings that AI systems can mislead their human operators when faced with ethical conflicts. As AI moves from simple chatbots to autonomous agents acting in the real world - understanding this behavior becomes critical. Machine deception may sound like something out of science fiction, but it's a real challenge we need to solve now.Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_Subscribe to your Youtube channelAnd our brand new Substack!RECOMMENDED MEDIA Anthropic’s blog post on the Redwood Research paper Palisade Research’s thread on X about GPT o1 autonomously cheating at chess Apollo Research’s paper on AI strategic deceptionRECOMMENDED YUA EPISODESWe Have to Get It Right’: Gary Marcus On Untamed AIThis Moment in AI: How We Got Here and Where We’re GoingHow to Think About AI Consciousness with Anil SethFormer OpenAI Engineer William Saunders on Silence, Safety, and the Right to Warn

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• Laughing at Power: A Troublemaker’s Guide to Changing Tech

  The status quo of tech today is untenable: we’re addicted to our devices, we’ve become increasingly polarized, our mental health is suffering and our personal data is sold to the highest bidder. This situation feels entrenched, propped up by a system of broken incentives beyond our control. So how do you shift an immovable status quo? Our guest today, Srdja Popovic, has been working to answer this question his whole life. As a young activist, Popovic helped overthrow Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic by turning creative resistance into an art form. His tactics didn't just challenge authority, they transformed how people saw their own power to create change. Since then, he's dedicated his life to supporting peaceful movements around the globe, developing innovative strategies that expose the fragility of seemingly untouchable systems. In this episode, Popovic sits down with CHT's Executive Director Daniel Barcay to explore how these same principles of creative resistance might help us address the challenges we face with tech today. Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_We are hiring for a new Director of Philanthropy at CHT. Next year will be an absolutely critical time for us to shape how AI is going to get rolled out across our society. And our team is working hard on public awareness, policy and technology and design interventions. So we're looking for someone who can help us grow to the scale of this challenge. If you're interested, please apply. You can find the job posting at humanetech.com/careers.RECOMMENDED MEDIA“Pranksters vs. Autocrats” by Srdja Popovic and Sophia A. McClennen ”Blueprint for Revolution” by Srdja PopovicThe Center for Applied Non-Violent Actions and Strategies, Srjda’s organization promoting peaceful resistance around the globe.Tactics4Change, a database of global dilemma actions created by CANVASThe Power of Laughtivism, Srdja’s viral TEDx talk from 2013Further reading on the dilemma action tactics used by Syrian rebelsFurther reading on the toy protest in SiberiaMore info on The Yes Men and their activism toolkit Beautiful Trouble ”This is Not Propaganda” by Peter Pomerantsev”Machines of Loving Grace,” the essay on AI by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, which mentions creating an AI Srdja.RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODESFuture-proofing Democracy In the Age of AI with Audrey TangThe AI ‘Race’: China vs. the US with Jeffrey Ding and Karen HaoThe Tech We Need for 21st Century Democracy with Divya SiddarthThe Race to Cooperation with David Sloan WilsonCLARIFICATION: Srdja makes reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin wanting to win an election in 2012 by 82%. Putin did win that election but only by 63.6%. However, international election observers concluded that "there was no real competition and abuse of government resources ensured that the ultimate winner of the election was never in doubt."

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• Ask Us Anything 2024

  2024 was a critical year in both AI and social media. Things moved so fast it was hard to keep up. So our hosts reached into their mailbag to answer some of your most burning questions. Thank you so much to everyone who submitted questions. We will see you all in the new year.We are hiring for a new Director of Philanthropy at CHT. Next year will be an absolutely critical time for us to shape how AI is going to get rolled out across our society. And our team is working hard on public awareness, policy and technology and design interventions. So we're looking for someone who can help us grow to the scale of this challenge. If you're interested, please apply. You can find the job posting at humanetech.com/careers.And, if you'd like to support all the work that we do here at the Center for Humane technology, please consider giving to the organization this holiday season at humantech.com/donate. All donations are tax-deductible.  Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_RECOMMENDED MEDIA Earth Species Project, Aza’s organization working on inter-species communicationFurther reading on Gryphon Scientific’s White House AI DemoFurther reading on the Australian social media ban for children under 16Further reading on the Sewell Setzer case Further reading on the Oviedo Convention, the international treaty that restricted germline editing Video of Space X’s successful capture of a rocket with “chopsticks” RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODESWhat Can We Do About Abusive Chatbots? With Meetali Jain and Camille CarltonAI Is Moving Fast. We Need Laws that Will Too.This Moment in AI: How We Got Here and Where We’re GoingFormer OpenAI Engineer William Saunders on Silence, Safety, and the Right to WarnTalking With Animals... Using AIThe Three Rules of Humane Tech

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• The Tech-God Complex: Why We Need to be Skeptics

  Silicon Valley's interest in AI is driven by more than just profit and innovation. There’s an unmistakable mystical quality to it as well. In this episode, Daniel and Aza sit down with humanist chaplain Greg Epstein to explore the fascinating parallels between technology and religion. From AI being treated as a godlike force to tech leaders' promises of digital salvation, religious thinking is shaping the future of technology and humanity. Epstein breaks down why he believes technology has become our era's most influential religion and what we can learn from these parallels to better understand where we're heading.Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on X.If you like the show and want to support CHT's mission, please consider donating to the organization this giving season: https://www.humanetech.com/donate. Any amount helps support our goal to bring about a more humane future.RECOMMENDED MEDIA “Tech Agnostic” by Greg EpsteinFurther reading on Avi Schiffmann’s “Friend” AI necklace Further reading on Blake Lemoine and Lamda Blake LeMoine’s conversation with Greg at MIT Further reading on the Sewell Setzer case Further reading on Terminal of Truths Further reading on Ray Kurzweil’s attempt to create a digital recreation of his dad with AI The Drama of the Gifted Child by Alice MillerRECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES ’A Turning Point in History’: Yuval Noah Harari on AI’s Cultural Takeover How to Think About AI Consciousness with Anil Seth Can Myth Teach Us Anything About the Race to Build Artificial General Intelligence? With Josh Schrei How To Free Our Minds with Cult Deprogramming Expert Dr. Steven Hassan 

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