Future of Science and Technology Q&A (May 16, 2025)

Video Description

Stephen Wolfram hosts an unscripted Ask Me Anything about the future of science and technology for all ages. Find the playlist of Q&A's here: https://wolfr.am/youtube-sw-qa Originally livestreamed at: https://twitch.tv/stephen_wolfram If you missed the original livestream of this episode, feel free to submit a question you would like Stephen to answer in a future Q&A livestream here: https://wolfr.am/12cczmv5J 00:00 Start stream 00:32 SW starts talking 00:51 I have come to believe that the future of copyright material will be null and void from the viewpoint of AI and their consumption of any and all available data with the use of local AI models on PCs. Would you agree and what else would you see possible with such power in the hands of individual users and their PCs? Imagine: video feeds, sensor arrays, radio, satellite feeds, weather stations, etc. 17:17 Do you see AI systems being integrated more directly into operating systems? And personal data is getting isolated more in devices, moving away from cloud-based integrations. I am considering using an open-source OS and seeing what it's like to integrate AI more tightly into it. For example, instead of needing several applications to query the AI models, do it on a device directly as part of the OS. I am considering this from a data security standpoint and user usability. Creating individual personalised AI. 28:28 Is is a possibility for AIs to take my ideas I've fed it and suggest it to other users? 30:27 Are there protections against web scraping that LLMs do? 34:05 The problem with the generative art is that all the platform that offer models to achieve this have prompt templates that just blatantly contain all sorts of artists names - to imitate their styles. 38:50 Do you think that advocacy for digital privacy rights can be compatible with AI advancement or prove to be a deterrent? 44:22 I've gotten messages from ChatGPT saying it can't make an image due to copyright, but if I hit retry it will more often than not make the image, how does this happen? 46:30 ​​I talked to chatGPT about how it creates text and it sounded similar to your ideas on emergent properties in the universe. Is this a coincidence that those are similar or is it a fundamental rule? 48:36 ​​I like to speculate about wild existential theories with most models, but they do give in too easily in discussions and they are very good at exaggerating 49:45 Will LLMs ever get to a point of not making stuff up? Or will they always need some sort of supporting software to crosscheck with? 52:57 Any future plans for similar discussions with a robot? Could be interesting to see the evolution of those over time. 53:18 Would you rather have AI robots as students or teachers at your summer school? 57:39 When will you hire your first AI worker? What do imagine they will do? 59:54 ​​Personally, I find that having a human that cares and can connect with the students is more successful in teaching me than AI, however, AI can be faster because its accessible at any time of the day. 1:03:36 Going forward, would you start teaching coding (to kids and others) starting first with an LLM interface or directly in a formal language as has been done up to now? 1:07:43 How can teachers motivate students? 1:12:12 I vividly remember when I saw my first Computer (Apple IIe). I immediately thought: THAT is the best toy I will ever have! 1:15:42 End stream Follow us on our official social media channels. X: https://x.com/WolframResearch/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wolframresearch/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wolframresearch/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wolfram-research/ Stephen Wolfram's Twitter: https://twitter.com/stephen_wolfram/ Contribute to the official Wolfram Community: https://community.wolfram.com/ Stay up-to-date on the latest interest at Wolfram Research through our blog: https://blog.wolfram.com/ Follow Stephen Wolfram's life, interests, and what makes him tick on his blog: https://writings.stephenwolfram.com/