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Connections
Connections

The future of human/AI relationships

By Evan Dawson,
Megan Mack, Julie Williams
Published July 8, 2025 at 3:07 PM EDT
Three men wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a bald man at left is wearing glasses, a pink tie and a grey striped button-down shirt; a man at center has short grey hair, a grey beard and is wearing glasses and a bright blue short-sleeved shirt; a man at right has short dark hair and is wearing a grey button-down shirt, white pants and sneakers.
David Griffin
/
WXXI News
Kevin Spencer Beckford and Mark Weber with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Tuesday, July 8, 2025
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
WXXI News

Will kids grow up with a mix of human and AI friends?

Should we get comfortable with that? Should we set boundaries, and if so, how?

Artificial intelligence is already part of human life and relationships – from virtual friends, to AI pornography, to work assistants, and AI counselors.

How much do we trust AI — with our emotions and decisions? We discuss it.

In studio:

  • Kevin Spencer Beckford, operations executive, speaker and business turnaround strategist, and AI humanist
  • Mark Weber, clinical associate professor in the School of Business and Leadership at Nazareth University

Take our audience survey to help us learn more about you, and make a better show for you.

Connections
Evan Dawson
Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
See stories by Evan Dawson
Megan Mack
Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.
See stories by Megan Mack
Julie Williams
Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.
See stories by Julie Williams