So what’s it like co-authoring a book with Reid Hoffman, the multi-billionaire co-founder of LinkedIn and amongst Silicon Valley’s most prominent Democrats? According to Greg Beato, who just co-wrote Superagency with Hoffman, it certainly beats co-authoring anything with an AI algorithm. Not that Beato has anything against artificial intelligence. The doomers and the gloomers have it all wrong, he reassures. There will be nothing Orwellian about today’s AI revolution, Beato says. Rather than 1984, he promises, our automatic future will be enriched by AI platforms like Pol.is and Remesh. I hope he’s right.
Here are the 5 KEEN ON takeaways from our conversation with Beato:
The concept of "super agency" differs from typical AI agents - Beato clarifies that rather than referring to autonomous AI agents, super agency describes what happens when millions of people gain access to new tools that enhance their human capabilities. The benefits compound as more people use these tools, similar to how the widespread adoption of automobiles and smartphones created societal-wide advantages.
Individual agency vs. collective benefit - While Beato’s Superagency emphasizes individual empowerment through AI, he stresses that individual agency is meant to be a starting point, not an endpoint. He draws parallels to America's founding principles, where individual liberty was important but existed within the larger context of building a collective democracy and Republic.
Contrasting view on AI surveillance concerns - Beato and Hoffman’s book challenges the persistent Orwellian fears about technology leading to dystopian surveillance and control. Beato argues that contrary to these long-standing predictions, technological advancement has historically led to increased individual power rather than centralized control.
The role of AI in writing and creativity - Beato shares his experience using AI tools like Claude and ChatGPT primarily as editorial aids rather than replacement writers. He suggests that writing is currently the creative field best suited for AI collaboration because it allows for iterative improvements, unlike other creative mediums.
Tension between optimism and realism - Beato acknowledges that there’s a tension between Reid Hoffman's more optimistic entrepreneurial outlook and his more measured and practical journalistic perspective. This is particularly evident in Beato’s discussion of major tech companies' trustworthiness and the challenges of ensuring AI benefits society broadly rather than just privileged individuals like Reid Hoffman and the other billionaires of Silicon Valley.
Greg Beato has been writing about technology and culture since the early days of the World Wide Web. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Wired, The Washington Post, The International Herald Tribune, Reason, Spin, Slate, Buzzfeed, The Guardian, and more than 100 other publications worldwide.
Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting the daily KEEN ON show, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy interview series. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.
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