Joel Pearson - I Think, Therefore AI

May 24, 2026 1h 29m

About this episode

In the age of AI, do you feel that your future is more uncertain? 💌Join 7,500+ people getting our takeaways and favourite moments from this episode in our weekly newsletter - <a href="http://bit.ly/45NyQDy">http://bit.ly/45NyQDy</a> In today’s Academy of Imperfection, we’re joined by Dr Joel Pearson; a neurofuturist, whose work centres around predicting how AI will impact every aspect of our lives from now on. While many of us (us included) first and foremost imagine the impacts of AI in a tech-revolution-y, robot butler-y, terminator-adjacent way, this episode goes deeper. Joel discusses how young people are forming attachments with AI companions and how we might see, perhaps the first generation in known history with a lower IQ than the one beforehand. We talk about the tangible and interconnected mental health impacts that this major societal disruption will have, and Hugh and Josh ask how in the world can we broach this topic with our kids? BUT, this episode isn’t all doom and gloom. Joel is a tech-optimist, after all. We talk to Joel about how we can foster human connection, and continue to develop our critical thinking skills, whilst not turning away from AI altogether. Joel, this has been invaluable. If you want to watch this full video on YouTube, follow this link - <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPGa6heppjE">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPGa6heppjE</a>  0:00 – The episode we’ve been putting off 10:10 – The only certainty is disruption 14:15 – Impact of AI on the brain 21:23 – Rewards and moral responsibility 27:11 – A scary mental health spiral 30:31 – Think of the children 35:10 – You may now kiss the AI 45:06 – Purposeful Utopia 58:42 – Seeing is no longer believing 1:02:21 – The Roadmap to AI 1:11:35 – Finding Motivation in Limbo 1:18:15 – Let’s Stack Some Habits 🫖Imperfects episodes mentioned in this episode <ul> <li>Dr Emily - Acceptance, That’s Radical - (1:22:53) - <a href="https://bit.ly/4dW7Bfa">https://bit.ly/4dW7Bfa</a></li> <li>Dr Emily - The Certainty of Uncertainty - (1:22:53) - <a href="https://bit.ly/3RTAjVl">https://bit.ly/3RTAjVl</a></li> <li>James Clear - Down The Habit Hole - (1:22:00) - <a href="https://bit.ly/4wIg5xV">https://bit.ly/4wIg5xV</a></li> </ul> 📖 Things to read <ul> <li>The Intuition Toolkit by Dr Joel Pearson - (3:18) - <a href="https://bit.ly/4v5NnFM">https://bit.ly/4v5NnFM</a></li> <li>Matt Shumer App Development Industry Blog - (27:11) - <a href="https://bit.ly/4uo65rY">https://bit.ly/4uo65rY</a></li> </ul> 💻Things to check out <ul> <li>Joel’s website - <a href="https://bit.ly/4upBURa">https://bit.ly/4upBURa</a></li> <li>Tristan Harris’ Center for Human Technology - (1:25:40) - <a href="https://bit.ly/4wGrFJZ">https://bit.ly/4wGrFJZ</a></li> <li>Figure Three Robotics - (42:51) - <a href="https://bit.ly/42J2Uiz">https://bit.ly/42J2Uiz</a></li> <li>Joel's work at the University of NSW as Deputy Director of Human Readiness UNSW AI Institute - <a href="https://bit.ly/4nPA89G">https://bit.ly/4nPA89G</a> </li> </ul> 📺 Things to watch <ul> <li>House of Dynamite - (26:21) - <a href="https://bit.ly/4uw5PYg">https://bit.ly/4uw5PYg</a></li> </ul> 🩷To host your own Vulnerabilitea House, purchase here - <a href="http://bit.ly/4lyuuWz">http://bit.ly/4lyuuWz</a> 🩵To purchase our journal (or your novel) My Imperfect Life, click here - <a href="http://bit.ly/4lyuuWz"></a><a href="http://bit.ly/4lyuuW">http://bit.ly/4lyuuW</a> 🩵To join our subscriber community, A Little More Imperfects, follow this link - <a href="http://bit.ly/4mqunxu">http://bit.ly/4mqunxu</a> 🩷 AND you can subscribe to A Little More Imperfects through Apple Podcasts too, here - <a href="http://apple.co/theimperfects">http://apple.co/theimperfects</a> The Imperfects is not a licensed mental health service and is not a substitute for professional mental health advice, treatment or assessment. The advice given in this episode is general in nature, but if you’re struggling, please see a healthcare professional, or call lifeline on 13 11 14.  See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

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