#218 – Jaron Lanier: Virtual Reality, Social Media & the Future of Humans and AI

About this episode

<p>Jaron Lanier is a computer scientist, composer, artist, author, and founder of the field of virtual reality. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:<br /> &#8211; <b>Skiff</b>: <a href="https://skiff.org/lex">https://skiff.org/lex</a> to get early access<br /> &#8211; <b>Novo</b>: <a href="https://banknovo.com/lex">https://banknovo.com/lex</a><br /> &#8211; <b>Onnit</b>: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/onnit">https://lexfridman.com/onnit</a> to get up to 10% off<br /> &#8211; <b>Indeed</b>: <a href="https://indeed.com/lex">https://indeed.com/lex</a> to get $75 credit<br /> &#8211; <b>Eight Sleep</b>: <a href="https://www.eightsleep.com/lex">https://www.eightsleep.com/lex</a> and use code LEX to get special savings</p> <p><b>EPISODE LINKS:</b><br /> Jaron&#8217;s Website: <a href="http://www.jaronlanier.com/">http://www.jaronlanier.com/</a><br /> Jaron&#8217;s Books: <a href="https://amzn.to/3tlhl9T">https://amzn.to/3tlhl9T</a></p> <p><b>PODCAST INFO:</b><br /> Podcast website: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/podcast">https://lexfridman.com/podcast</a><br /> Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://apple.co/2lwqZIr">https://apple.co/2lwqZIr</a><br /> Spotify: <a href="https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8">https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8</a><br /> RSS: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/">https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/</a><br /> YouTube Full Episodes: <a href="https://youtube.com/lexfridman">https://youtube.com/lexfridman</a><br /> YouTube Clips: <a href="https://youtube.com/lexclips">https://youtube.com/lexclips</a></p> <p><b>SUPPORT &#38; CONNECT:</b><br /> &#8211; Check out the sponsors above, it&#8217;s the best way to support this podcast<br /> &#8211; Support on Patreon: <a href="https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman">https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/lexfridman">https://twitter.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman">https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman">https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman">https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Medium: <a href="https://medium.com/@lexfridman">https://medium.com/@lexfridman</a></p> <p><b>OUTLINE:</b><br /> Here&#8217;s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.<br /> (00:00) &#8211; Introduction<br /> (08:04) &#8211; What is reality?<br /> (12:17) &#8211; Turing machines<br /> (13:35) &#8211; Simulating our universe<br /> (19:49) &#8211; Video games and other immersive experiences<br /> (23:37) &#8211; Death and consciousness<br /> (32:08) &#8211; Designing human-centric AI<br /> (33:42) &#8211; Empathy with robots<br /> (37:33) &#8211; Social media incentives<br /> (49:53) &#8211; Data dignity<br /> (57:26) &#8211; Jack Dorsey and Twitter<br /> (1:09:10) &#8211; Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies<br /> (1:13:51) &#8211; Government overreach and freedom<br /> (1:24:06) &#8211; GitHub and TikTok<br /> (1:26:16) &#8211; The Autodidactic Universe<br /> (1:31:07) &#8211; Humans and the mystery of music<br /> (1:37:17) &#8211; Defining moments<br /> (1:48:03) &#8211; Mortality<br /> (1:49:56) &#8211; The meaning of life</p>