What does it mean to be human when machines can think, reason, and create? Four leaders with expertise in AI research, political psychology, ethics, and social science explore what it means to be human as technology reshapes intuition, attention, and connection.

Speakers:

• Al-Zain Al-Sabah, Ambassador to the United States from the State of Kuwait (Middle East Leadership Initiative)
• John Clippinger, Co-founder, First Principles First
• Caroline Emmer De Albuquerque Green, Director of Research, Institute for Ethics in AI, University of Oxford
• Stephen Hawkins, Global Director of Research, More in Common

Moderated by: Chris Varelas, Founder, Finance Leaders Fellowship and Technology Leaders Initiative; Aspen Institute Trustee

Through personal stories of faith, loss, and care, the panel wrestled with humanity’s biggest challenge: not technology itself, but the wisdom to keep pace with it. The conversation moved from emotional intelligence and the erosion of social trust to what leaders owe the people who follow them.

“We are all dependent on each other from the moment we are born all the way to the end,” said Caroline Emmer De Albuquerque Green.

It’s a simple claim, but one the panel returned to again and again. Connection, care, and vulnerability, they argued, are what technology still can’t replicate. Al-Zain Al-Sabah put it most simply, reframing Descartes for the current moment: “I feel, therefore I am.”