Friends,
For decades, science fiction has painted AI as humanity's downfall. Think: Killer robots, surveillance states, and the end of human agency. In this episode of The Generalist, I'm joined by someone who's been actively architecting a different AI future: Reid Hoffman.
Reid isn't just theorizing about AI, he's building it. As co-founder of LinkedIn, card-carrying member of the PayPal Mafia, former OpenAI board member, and founder of multiple AI startups, he's had a hand in shaping our technological landscape for over two decades. His latest book, Superagency: What Could Possibly Go Right with Our AI Future, makes a compelling case for AI optimism that's grounded in deep thinking and practical experience.
In our conversation, Reid shares why he’s optimistic about what’s to come, how we can use AI to foster human creativity, and what we need to do to ensure a world where technology works for us—not the other way around.
We explore:
Why Reid wrote Superagency, and his belief that AI leads to more human agency, not less
The philosophical questions raised by AI’s reasoning: Can machines truly think, or are they just mimicking us?
How generative AI promotes collaboration and creativity over passive consumption
Preserving humanity's essence as transformative technologies like gene editing and neural interfaces become mainstream
Reid’s optimistic take on synthetic biological intelligence as a symbiotic relationship
How AI agents can actually deepen human friendships rather than replace them
A glimpse at how Reid uses AI in his daily life
Reid’s “mini-curriculum” on science fiction and philosophy — two essential lenses for understanding AI’s potential
And much more
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Explore the episode
Timestamps
(00:00) Intro
(06:10) Why Reid wrote Superagency
(11:30) Reid AI—and using tech to highlight human agency
(13:55) The book Amusing Ourselves to Death, and the pros and cons of any new technology
(18:55) A brief overview of Reid’s career
(25:16) An explanation of Reid’s belief system as a ‘mystical atheist’
(27:47) Reid’s term ‘homo techne’ and how technology makes us more human
(33:54) Preserving genetic diversity to safeguard humanity
(39:05) Reid’s optimistic take on synthetic biological intelligence
(42:34) Why Reid wants more optimistic science fiction
(45:40) The value of literature—and potential future mediums for creatives
(49:12) The importance of thoughtful regulation
(59:35) AI’s impact on human friendships
(1:03:49) Platforms for AI agents
(1:05:50) How Reid uses AI in his daily life
(1:09:28) Final meditations
Books
Superagency: What Could Possibly Go Right with Our AI Future: https://www.amazon.com/Superagency-Could-Possibly-Right-Future-ebook/dp/B0D886ZQHY
Impromptu: Amplifying Our Humanity Through AI: https://www.amazon.com/Impromptu-Amplifying-Our-Humanity-Through/dp/B0BYLSCPPV
1984: https://www.amazon.com/1984-Signet-Classics-George-Orwell/dp/0451524934
Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business: https://www.amazon.com/Amusing-Ourselves-Death-Discourse-Business/dp/014303653X
Brave New World: https://www.amazon.com/Brave-New-World-Aldous-Huxley/dp/0060850523
On Bullshit: https://www.amazon.com/Bullshit-Harry-G-Frankfurt/dp/0691122946
Culture series: https://www.amazon.com/Iain-M-Banks-Culture-anniversary/dp/0356502090/
Klara and the Sun: https://www.amazon.com/Klara-Sun-Ishiguro-Kazuo/dp/0571364888?
Ulysses: https://www.amazon.com/Ulysses-James-Joyce/dp/0679722769
The Player of Games: https://www.amazon.com/Player-Games-Culture-Iain-Banks/dp/0316005401/r
Look to Winward: https://www.amazon.com/Look-Windward-Culture-Novel-Book-ebook/dp/B001D20270
Excession: https://www.amazon.com/Excession-Iain-M-Banks/dp/0553575376
Startide Rising: https://www.amazon.com/Startide-Rising-Uplift-Saga-2/dp/1504064720
The Murderbot Diaries Vol 1: https://www.amazon.com/Murderbot-Diaries-Vol-1/dp/1250389828/r
Ender’s Game: https://www.amazon.com/Enders-Game-Ender-Quintet-1/dp/1250773024/
Other resources
Greg Beato on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregbeato/
Reid Hoffman meets his AI twin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgD2gmwCS10
Humanity’s Hegelian Golden Braid speech: https://www.reidhoffman.org/perugia-speech/
Aldous Huxley: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldous_Huxley
Idiocracy: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387808/
Ludwig Wittgenstein: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_Wittgenstein
Language game: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_game_(philosophy)
Gareth Evans: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gareth_Evans_(philosopher)
Reid Hoffman and ChatGPT | Talking AI with AI : Introducing Fireside Chatbots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1kSfVO1YJ0
NotebookLM: https://notebooklm.google/
Turing test: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turing_test
Harry Frankfurt: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Frankfurt
Logical reasoning: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logical_reasoning
Bayesian inference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayesian_inference
Reid Hoffman’s ‘homo techne’ post on X: https://x.com/reidhoffman/status/1619368528695668736
Roger Penrose: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Penrose
Fyodor Dostoevsky: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fyodor_Dostoevsky
Leo Tolstoy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Tolstoy
Disco Elysium: https://discoelysium.com/
Marcel Proust: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcel_Proust
Seatbelt laws in the United States: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt_laws_in_the_United_States
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences: https://www.amacad.org/
Inflection AI: https://inflection.ai/
Pi: https://pi.ai/
Alain de Botton’s website: https://www.alaindebotton.com/
Ron Chrisley on X: https://x.com/RonChrisley
David Chalmer’s website: https://consc.net/
Follow Reid Hoffman
Website: https://www.reidhoffman.org/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reidhoffman/
Podcast: https://www.possible.fm/
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