Should You Be Friends with an AI? (Making Sense #427)

You can watch the full episodeand all fulllength episodes of the Making Sense podcaston YouTube by becoming a channel member here

You can also subscribe at samharris.org/subscribe. There, you'll get access to full-length episodes of the podcast, and Sam's Substack, where you can engage with the Making Sense community. We offer partial scholarships for those who cannot afford the full subscription price.

Sam Harris speaks with Paul Bloom about AI and current events. They discuss the state of LLMs, the risks and benefits of AI companionship, what it means to attribute consciousness to AI, relationships with AI as a form of psychosis, Trump’s attacks on science and academia, what Trump may be trying to hide in the Epstein files, how damaging Trump’s connections to Epstein might be, MAGA’s obsession with conspiracy theories, questions surrounding Epstein’s death, Paul’s research on revenge, Sam’s falling out with Elon Musk, where things went wrong for Elon, and other topics.

Paul Bloom is a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto, and Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Yale University. He studies how children and adults make sense of the world, with a special focus on pleasure, morality, religion, fiction, and art. He has won numerous awards for his research and teaching. He is the former president of the Society for Philosophy and Psychology, and co-editor of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. He has written for scientific journals such as Nature and Science, and for popular outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic Monthly. He is the author of seven books, including his latest, Psych: The Story of the Human Mind.

Website: paulbloom.net

X: @paulbloomatyale

Become a channel member for fulllength episodes

Subscribe to the YouTube channel

Follow Sam on Instagram

Follow Sam on Facebook

For more information about Sam Harris