When AI Feels Pain: Are We Ready for Conscious Machines?
What happens if the next breakthrough in AI gives us machines that can suffer? Are we prepared to give robots the same moral status as animals?
Read MoreDr. Mark van Rijmenam is a strategic futurist known as The Digital Speaker. He globally ranked as the #1 futurist. He stands at the forefront of the digital age and lives and breathes cutting-edge technologies to inspire Fortune 500 companies and governments worldwide. As an optimistic dystopian, he has a deep understanding of AI, blockchain, the metaverse, and other emerging technologies, blending academic rigor with technological innovation.
His pioneering efforts include the world’s first TEDx Talk in VR in 2020. In 2023, he further pushed boundaries when he delivered a TEDx talk in Athens with his digital twin, delving into the complex interplay of AI and our perception of reality. In 2024, he launched a digital twin of himself, offering interactive, on-demand conversations via text, audio, or video in 29 languages, thereby bridging the gap between the digital and physical worlds – another world’s first.
Dr. Van Rijmenam is a prolific author and has written more than 1,200 articles and five books in his career. As a corporate educator, he is celebrated for his candid, independent, and balanced insights. He is also the founder of Futurwise, which focuses on elevating global knowledge on crucial topics like technology, healthcare, and climate change by providing high-quality, hyper-personalized, and easily digestible insights from trusted sources.
Below, you can read all his articles.
What happens if the next breakthrough in AI gives us machines that can suffer? Are we prepared to give robots the same moral status as animals?
Read MoreWhy rely on biology alone when you can program synthetic cells to do its job better?
Read MoreThis week’s Synthetic Minds covers my recognition as the world’s #1 futurist, why OpenAI is now securing nukes, how China is racing ahead in AI, SpaceX’s quantum leap beyond rockets, and the legal chaos of AI-generated art. The future isn’t waiting. Will you lead it or be left behind?
Read MoreGoogle once promised its AI wouldn’t be used for weapons, surveillance, or harm. This week, those promises quietly disappeared...
Read MoreWe’ve been sold the idea that AI and humans working together will outperform either alone but what if that’s wrong? New research suggests that in many cases, AI-human collaboration actually underperforms compared to AI alone or skilled humans. So, are we integrating AI the wro...
Read MoreAI doesn’t run on magic. It runs on data centers the size of small cities, devouring energy and land at a record pace. Tech giants are spending hundreds of billions to fuel AI’s expansion, but with rising power shortages and government pushback, how long before this growth hit...
Read MoreWhile Silicon Valley debates how to respond to Deepseek, China is busy building the next AI superpowers. With billions in funding and backing from tech giants, startups like Stepfun, ModelBest, and Zhipu AI aren’t just competing, they’re leapfrogging.
Read MoreWhen technology crosses borders, trust and security become the ultimate battleground. DeepSeek’s rise may be impressive, but its risks are too high.
Read MoreOpenAI isn’t just building smarter AI. It’s building the devices we’ll use to interact with it. A new trademark application hints at AI-powered robots, VR headsets, and even smart jewelry. If this is OpenAI’s next frontier, Apple, Meta, and Tesla should be paying attention.
Read MoreWe’re not becoming 10x more productive with AI—we’re becoming 10x more dependent. Developers, analysts, and business leaders alike are outsourcing thinking to AI, and when it’s unavailable, many find themselves paralyzed. This isn’t an upgrade—it’s a quiet erosion of critical ...
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