The Metaphysics of AI：How AI is Reshaping how we Think

Speaker: Karl Kraatz

Venue: 311, Building 4, Chenjun Court, Zijingang Campus

Abstract: This talk explores the Metaphysics of Artificial Intelligence, focusing on the foundational assumptions underpinning generative AI technologies. I argue that we are experiencing a paradigm shift—from scientism to dataism and from a metaphysics of matter to a metaphysics of information. Philosophers play a crucial role in drawing attention to these transformations and, where necessary, cautioning about their implications. By building on phenomenology and hermeneutics, and engaging with thinkers such as Husserl, Heidegger, Arendt, Derrida, and Baudrillard, I contend that AI’s existential risks extend beyond mere catastrophic potential to a profound reshaping of human thought. As Hubert Dreyfus once remarked: The real danger of computers is not that they will become more like us, but the reverse: that we will become more like computers. This talk aims to make these insights accessible to non-philosophers, using examples from recent advancements in AI, such as DeepSeek’s reasoning capabilities and breakthroughs at the intersection of biology and artificial intelligence.