Are today’s democratic systems equipped well enough to create the best possible future for everyone? If they’re not, what systems might work better? And are governments around the world taking the destabilizing threats of new technologies seriously enough, or will it take a dramatic event, such as an AI-driven war, to get their act together?

Imagine a World is a podcast exploring a range of plausible and positive futures with advanced AI, produced by the Future of Life Institute. We interview the creators of 8 diverse and thought provoking imagined futures that we received as part of the worldbuilding contest FLI ran last year.

In this first episode of Imagine A World we explore the fictional worldbuild titled ‘Peace Through Prophecy’.

Host Guillaume Riesen speaks to the makers of ‘Peace Through Prophecy’, a second place entry in FLI’s Worldbuilding Contest. The worldbuild was created by Jackson Wagner, Diana Gurvich and Holly Oatley. In the episode, Jackson and Holly discuss just a few of the many ideas bubbling around in their imagined future.

At its core, this world is arguably about community. It asks how technology might bring us closer together, and allow us to reinvent our social systems. Many roads are explored, a whole garden of governance systems bolstered by Artificial Intelligence and other technologies. Overall, there’s a shift towards more intimate and empowered communities. Even the AI systems eventually come to see their emotional and creative potentials realized. While progress is uneven, and littered with many human setbacks, a pretty good case is made for how everyone’s best interests can lead us to a more positive future.

Please note: This episode explores the ideas created as part of FLI’s Worldbuilding contest, and our hope is that this series sparks discussion about the kinds of futures we want. The ideas present in these imagined worlds and in our podcast are not to be taken as FLI endorsed positions

Explore this imagined world: https://worldbuild.ai/peace-through-prophecy

The podcast is produced by the Future of Life Institute (FLI), a non-profit dedicated to guiding transformative technologies for humanity’s benefit and reducing existential risks. To achieve this we engage in policy advocacy, grantmaking and educational outreach across three major areas: artificial intelligence, nuclear weapons, and biotechnology. If you are a storyteller, FLI can support you with scientific insights and help you understand the incredible narrative potential of these world-changing technologies. If you would like to learn more, or are interested in collaborating with the teams featured in our episodes, please email worldbuild@futureoflife.org. You can find more about our work at www.futureoflife.org, or subscribe to our newsletter to get updates on all our projects.

Media and concepts referenced in the episode:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prediction_market

https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/

‘Veil of ignorance’ thought experiment: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Original_position

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_democracy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dispossessed

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terra_Ignota

https://equilibriabook.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Rawls

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_transparency

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audrey_Tang

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadratic_voting#Quadratic_funding