On this day after Thanksgiving, Connections has special national broadcasts from the Possible Podcast:*
12:00: Possible: Sal Khan on the future of K-12 education
1:00: Possible: Kara Swisher on AI, media, and accountability
First, what if every learner on the planet had access to a world-class education? This week’s Possible guest has an impressive track record of using technology to make that dream a reality. Sal Khan is the founder and CEO of Khan Academy, an education nonprofit whose pioneering digital tools support K-12 students everywhere, along with parents, teachers, and school districts. In this episode, Sal discusses how technology widens access to education and creates more meaningful learning experiences. He also shares his experience helping train Chat-GPT and speaks to why, 15 years after launching Khan Academy, he has decided to go all in on AI. Plus, a special guest joins the podcast to demo Khan Academy’s new AI chatbot tutor, Khanmigo.
Then, what will the media landscape look like as tech companies, as opposed to traditional media, own increasingly more ink? And who better to offer an optimistic take on the news industry’s future than…Kara Swisher?! Reid and Aria speak with the famous—and famously direct—tech journalist, author, and podcast host about the roles and responsibilities of journalists covering rapidly developing innovations, along with those of the technologists driving advancements. They cover the OpenAI/New York Times lawsuit, disinformation, TikTok legislation, and AI’s potential to improve healthcare and climate outcomes. Plus, Kara makes the case that today’s content creators benefit from staying relatively small vs. striving for scale.
Then, Friday night:
9:00: Possible: Kevin Scott on AI and humanism
What if artificial intelligence becomes so ubiquitous that, in the future, we won’t be able to imagine what life was like without it? Kevin Scott is executive vice president of AI and chief technology officer of Microsoft. He joins the Possible Podcast to talk about AI, its impact on education, health care and jobs, and how AI can benefit more of us, irrespective of our geography. Kevin, Reid, and Aria discuss Kevin’s leading role in Microsoft’s OpenAI partnership, along with collective decision-making for ethical AI, how technology can empower rural communities, and what’s underlying Kevin’s humanist perspective on artificial general intelligence. Plus, Kevin reacts to some advice from Microsoft Copilot.
10:00: Possible: Anne-Marie Slaughter on the future of the care economy
Can technology help us fulfill our potential as caring beings, as well as rational, calculating beings? Anne-Marie Slaughter is a scholar, public intellectual, and CEO of New America, a think tank that focuses on a wide range of public policy issues. She joins the podcast to talk about public interest technology, the care economy, and, ultimately, the ways technology can help make humans whole. Reid, Aria, and Anne-Marie discuss caring for our elders, the child care crisis, and speculate on what new era humanity is entering — and how AI and other technologies are contributing to that shift. Plus, Inflection’s Pi joins to offer information on the care economy.
*The Possible Podcast: What if, in the future, everything breaks humanity's way? Possible is an award-winning, weekly show that sketches out the brightest version of the future—and what it will take to get there. Hosts Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger explore what’s possible with forward-thinking leaders, deep thinkers, and ambitious builders across many fields, such as technology, art, education and health care. These conversations center on the ways technology—and, in particular, AI—is shaping the future. In episodes, AI tools such as OpenAI’s GPT-4 and Inflection’s Pi are at work, offering informational asides, prompting guests, or demoing what they can do. Lastly, between guest episodes, Aria interviews her co-host Reid on his latest takes on what’s possible if we use technology—and our collective effort—effectively.
