Possible in 2023 | Art that inspires optimism

It has been a big first year for Possible.?

Since kicking off the podcast last spring with Trevor Noah talking about AI and the future of entertainment, Aria Finger and I have enjoyed conversation after conversation with some truly big thinkers and ambitious doers: We’ve heard about the development of safe, humanity-amplifying artificial intelligence from OpenAI's Sam Altman. We’ve explored some of the ways AI can help shape everything from diplomacy and geopolitics (Condoleezza Rice) to the creative process ( Marques Brownlee , Kim Stanley Robinson, Sarah Sze) to justice and welfare systems (Bryan Stevenson, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins ) to healthcare ( Peter Lee , Siddhartha Mukherjee). We’ve talked about AI in education ( Ben Nelson ), the care economy ( Anne-Marie Slaughter ), transportation (Janette Sadik-Khan), space exploration ( Ariel Ekblaw ), and much more.?

We’ve also had some AI cameos—from Inflection AI ’s Pi and OpenAI 's ChatGPT-4—along the way.??

Ultimately, I know that Possible’s debut year (including some neat recognition as a 2023 Signal Awards winner for “Best Tech Podcast” and ADWEEK Audio Award winner for “Best Innovation Podcast”) is made possible not only by our wonderful guests, the Possible team, but also by you, our community of listeners. First, thank you for listening. And thanks for your willingness to engage with the ideas, to (re)consider what might be, and to share with us what you think. I believe we are all learning to use what will be one of the most important technologies of our lifetime—and getting a sense of how AI can elevate humanity.?

Looking ahead, we have a great lineup of new episodes for you in 2024. We’ll continue having conversations with leading builders and thinkers—and yes, AI tools—shaping the world we live in. Together, we’ll keep challenging outdated assumptions and systems, and learning about the newest innovations and applications. Above all, we’ll keep exploring this key question: What if, in the future, everything breaks humanity's way?

We will also be doing a season review as we wrap Season 2, in which Aria and I will be answering some questions from listeners. We’ll put out a call for questions, but if you have any you’d like answered by Aria or me about AI, the future, and humanity, please comment below and the Possible team will review them.?

Thanks again for listening and have a rejuvenating rest of the year. Possible will be back in 2024!

- Reid

P.S. As we reflect on the year, please enjoy our recent guests' answers to one of the rapid-fire questions that Aria Finger and I ask all of our guests ("Is there a movie, song, or book that fills you with optimism for the future?"):

Ethan Mollick said the Culture novels by #IainMBanks fill him with optimism for the future “because of their view of a world where there are super intelligent AIs, and yet people are optimizing their own potential.”

For more from 美国宾夕法尼亚大学 - 沃顿商学院 's Ethan Mollick : https://link.chtbl.com/jZ-F08kF

Kim Stanley Robinson said Groundhog Day fills him with optimism for the future “because it’s existential. How do you live?…You've got to keep working at it.”

For more from #scifi great #KimStanleyRobinson, here’s his episode: https://link.chtbl.com/8YMsBlzg?

Anne-Marie Slaughter said How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan, about psychedelic-assisted therapy, fills her with optimism for the future in the way it gives space to parts of our brain beyond our ego.?

For more from New America CEO Anne-Marie Slaughter : https://link.chtbl.com/Qu-E6Vuc

Siddhartha Mukherjee said The Making of the Atomic Bomb actually fills him with optimism for the future, as it reminds us that even after humans do terrible harm, they are capable of learning empathy.

For more from physician and author Sid Mukherjee: https://link.chtbl.com/bskjNfti

Condoleezza Rice said the 2022 film Chevalier—based on a true story about the son of a French slave owner and an African maid who turns out to be an extraordinary violinist and fencer—fills her with optimism for the future by reminding her that there’s talent everywhere.?

For more from former U.S. Secretary of State and current director of Hoover Institution, Stanford University Condoleezza Rice: https://link.chtbl.com/HWqC5DU_

Sarah Sze said the fantasy-drama Beasts of the Southern Wild fills her with optimism for the future by telling a deeply moving story about memory and humanity.

For more from contemporary artist #SarahSze, here’s her episode: https://link.chtbl.com/Jo-W44m-?

Marques Brownlee said the song “Primadonna” by Skogsr? fills him with optimism for the future. Why? “The arc of the song feels exactly like the arc of life, and it’s really flowery and optimistic and great at the end.”

For more from MKBHD:

https://link.chtbl.com/jv2RHx88

Peter Lee said the song “Aquamarine” (feat. Michael Kiwanuka) by Danger Mouse and Black Thought fills him with hope for the future. He encourages us to give the lyrics to GPT-4 to see why.

For more from Microsoft Research exec Peter Lee : https://link.chtbl.com/M9jVQqAR

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Roboticist Maja Matari? said Pixar Animation Studios ' Wall-E fills her with optimism by showing “the way that we are infinitely malleable as a species. We can do better and be better, and so can the machines that we create.”

For more from AI researcher Maja Mataric : https://link.chtbl.com/uOW89bW7

Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins said The Way of Integrity by Martha Beck fills her with optimism by calling on all of us to go toward what we are designed to do.

For more from Promise CEO Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins , here’s her episode: https://link.chtbl.com/96ijT2p5

For more uplifting recs, here are a few from Possible’s Season 1 guests, including Trevor Noah, Greg Brockman , Janette Sadik-Khan, Saul Griffith and other leading thinkers:

https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/possible-art-inspires-optimism-reid-hoffman/