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Leaders at Davos are turning "anxiety into action"
The shifting geopolitical landscape and uncertainty surrounding the future of AI have stirred anxiety among those gathered in Davos. Yet, there are glimmers of hope. “The most important thing for me is really to turn the anxiety into action," said Teresa Hutson, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft. She emphasizes the need for organizations, businesses, and individuals to tackle global challenges with proactive, “action-oriented optimism.” Only then does she believe we can start to solve problems that have so far felt unsolvable.
Others, like Annemarie Hou, Executive Director of the UN Office for Partnerships, share this hope. She sees promise in the business sector’s commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals at Davos as a testament. She remarks, "It's up to all of us right now, in the moment, to continue to push as far as we can and get the world as far as we can by 2030."
This conversation is presented by GZERO, in partnership with Microsoft, from the 2025 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The Global Stage series convenes global leaders for critical conversations on the geopolitical and technological trends shaping our world.
Follow GZERO coverage of Davos here: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage
What role does natural gas play in a clean energy transition?
Listen: How does natural gas fit into the shift toward a cleaner energy future? In this episode of Energized: The Future of Energy, host JJ Ramberg and Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel sit down with former CongressmanTim Ryan of Ohio. They discuss how energy jobs have revitalized Ohio’s economy, the role workers from the energy industry could play in the upcoming US election, and how natural gas can be combined with renewables to create a cleaner, more efficient energy transition.
Catch up on other episodes of Energized: The Future of Energy below — or listen on Apple, Spotify, Goodpods, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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- Pulitzer Prize-winning author Daniel Yergin on energy security in a changing world ›
- Introducing “Energized: The Future of Energy”, a new podcast series ›
- Partnering for the future: Indigenous communities and energy transition - GZERO Media ›
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From AI to food recycling: Innovations transforming the energy sector
Listen: Making change is all about innovation. That’s no different when it comes to the energy sector. In this episode of Energized: The Future of Energy, host JJ Ramberg and Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel talk to two innovators in the energy sector. First, we hear from Uli Homann, a Distinguished Architect in the Cloud and Enterprise business at Microsoft, about how generative AI is putting new strains on our energy systems—and creating new opportunities to make the grid more efficient.
Then, JJ talks with Caitlin Tessin, Vice President of Strategy and Market Innovation at Enbridge, and Ryan Begin, CEO of Divert, about how we can create natural gas from a surprising source: wasted food.
Catch up on other episodes of Energized: The Future of Energy below — or listen on Apple, Spotify, Goodpods, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- Can we keep energy affordable, safe, and secure? ›
- Pulitzer Prize-winning author Daniel Yergin on energy security in a changing world ›
- Introducing “Energized: The Future of Energy”, a new podcast series ›
- Energized: The Future of Energy - GZERO Media ›
- Partnering for the future: Indigenous communities and energy transition - GZERO Media ›
- What role does natural gas play in a clean energy transition? - GZERO Media ›
AI's evolving role in society
In a world where humanity put a man on the moon before adding wheels to luggage, the rapid advancements in AI seem almost paradoxical. Microsoft’s chief data scientist Juan Lavista, in a recent Global Stage conversation with Tony Maciulis, highlighted this contrast to emphasize how swiftly AI has evolved, particularly in the last few years.
Lavista discussed the impact of generative AI, which allows users to create hyper-realistic images, videos, and audio. This capability is both impressive and concerning, as demonstrated in their “Real or Not?” Quiz, where even experts struggle to distinguish between AI-generated and real images.
While AI offers incredible tools for good, Lavista warns of the potential risks, particularly with deepfakes and other deceptive technologies. He stresses the importance of public education and the need for AI models to be trained on diverse data to avoid biases.
As AI continues to evolve, its impact on daily life will only grow. Lavista predicts more accurate and less error-prone models in the future, underscoring the need to balance innovation with responsible use.
Watch more interviews from Global Stage.
- AI regulation means adapting old laws for new tech: Marietje Schaake ›
- A vision for inclusive AI governance ›
- Welcome to your AI video fever dream ›
- How is AI shaping culture in the art world? ›
- Microsoft's Teresa Hutson on rebuilding trust in the Age of AI - GZERO Media ›
- AI in 2025: The "new electricity" could create huge economic growth - GZERO Media ›
- Ian Bremmer: Can the US still lead AI innovation while cutting global ties? - GZERO Media ›
- Is the Europe-US rift leaving us all vulnerable? - GZERO Media ›
DNA Helix.
CRISPR gets an AI upgrade
CRISPR, the gene-editing method that won two female scientists the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, may soon get infused with artificial intelligence. One Northern California startup called Profluent is expected to present its new paper at a gene-editing conference next month, which describes its work using AI to analyze biological data and create new gene-editing systems.
As one professor explained to the New York Times, it’s a departure from how CRISPR typically does gene replacement. Instead of altering genes based on discoveries in nature, the startup instead uses novel methods surfaced by its AI. “They have never existed on Earth,” University of California, San Francisco professor James Fraser said. “The system has learned from nature to create them, but they are new.”
Gene-editing is rife with ethical quandaries, such as questions around modifying human embryos, which could be exacerbated by the rise of AI. Still, CRISPR provides hope: it could provide cures to countless diseases and is already providing innovative new treatments for sickle-cell anemia.
Profluent also chose to open-source one of its gene editors, OpenCRISPR-1, though the underlying AI will stay under wraps, the company said.
Yuval Noah Harari on protecting the right to be stupid
Bestselling author and historian Yuval Noah Harari makes the case for mental self-care in an age where our minds are bombarded with an unprecedented influx of information. In a wide-ranging interview with Ian Bremmer, filmed before a live audience at the 92nd Street Y in New York City, Harari stresses the importance of a healthy ‘'information diet.'
"Our minds were shaped back in the Stone Age," Harari says. Smartphones and social media, designed by the today’s smartest minds, are engineered to 'hack our brains and manipulate our emotions. Harari warns, "Anybody who thinks they are strong enough to resist it is just fooling themselves."
As a public intellectual, Harari is acutely aware of the weight of his words. "We need to build a wall between the mind and the mouth," he tells Bremmer. "I also think that we need a part of preserving privacy is to preserve the right for stupidity."
Watch full episode: Yuval Noah Harari explains why the world isn't fair (but could be)
Catch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week online and on US public television. Check local listings.
- Podcast: Tracking the rapid rise of human-enhancing biotech with Siddhartha Mukherjee ›
- Why is America punching below its weight on happiness? ›
- Is life better than ever for the human race? ›
- Podcast: The case for global optimism with Steven Pinker ›
- Why human beings are so easily fooled by AI, psychologist Steven Pinker explains ›
Yuval Noah Harari: AI is a “social weapon of mass destruction” to humanity
In a wide-ranging conversation with Ian Bremmer, filmed live at the historic 92nd Street Y in NYC, bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari delves deep into the profound shifts AI is creating in geopolitical power dynamics, narrative control, and the future of humanity.
Highlighting AI's unparalleled capacity to make autonomous decisions and generate original content, Harari underscores the rapid pace at which humans are ceding control over both power and stories to machines. "AI is the first technology in history that can take power away from us,” Harari tells Bremmer.
The discussion also touches on AI's impact on democracy and personal relationships, with Harari emphasizing AI's infiltration into our conversations and its burgeoning ability to simulate intimacy. This, he warns, could "destroy trust between people and destroy the ability to have a conversation," thereby unraveling the fabric of democracy itself. Harari chillingly refers to this potential outcome as "a social weapon of mass destruction." And it’s scaring dictators as much as democratic leaders. “Dictators,” Harari reminds us, “they have problems too.”
Harari's insights into AI's impact on democracy, intimacy, and social cohesion offer a stark vision of the challenges and transformations lying ahead. "The most sophisticated information technology in history, and people can no longer talk with each other?"
Watch full episode: Yuval Noah Harari explains why the world isn't fair (but could be)
Catch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week online and on US public television. Check local listings.
- Everybody wants to regulate AI ›
- AI regulation means adapting old laws for new tech: Marietje Schaake ›
- Why human beings are so easily fooled by AI, psychologist Steven Pinker explains ›
- Steven Pinker shares his "relentless optimism" about human progress ›
- From CRISPR to cloning: The science of new humans ›
- Will AI further divide us or help build meaningful connections? - GZERO Media ›
- How neurotech could enhance our brains using AI - GZERO Media ›
- How is AI shaping culture in the art world? - GZERO Media ›
- AI is turbocharging the stock market, but is it all hype? - GZERO Media ›
- Can the UN get the world to agree on AI safety? - GZERO Media ›
Why the world isn't fair: Yuval Noah Harari
In a wide-ranging conversation with Ian Bremmer, filmed live at the historic 92nd Street Y in NYC, bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari delves into the foundational role of storytelling in human civilization, the existential challenges posed by artificial intelligence, the geopolitical implications of the Ukraine war, and the most pressing questions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Harari argues that unlike other species, humans have thrived on their unique ability to construct and believe in shared stories, which has underpinned the formation of societies, governments, and laws. However, this same capability has led to wars, inequality, and exploitation. “Humans don't fight over territory and food,” Harari tells Bremmer. They fight over imaginary stories in their minds."
Harari and Ian discuss the current global crises, including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as moments where humanity's collaborative superpower appears to falter. On the Ukraine war, he says that the implications of a Russian victory would spell the end of the global order as we know it. "We could already be in the midst of World War III that started on the 24th of February 2022 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and we just don't know it yet."
They discuss AI's emerging role in creating and disseminating stories, which represents a new frontier. Harari warns that AI could eventually dominate the world's narratives, making democracy untenable and posing unprecedented challenges to both autocracies and democracies alike. "For the first time in history, we are losing power as a species at a very rapid pace, and similarly, we are also losing control of the stories that we believe."
He also specifically addresses the critical situation in Israel, criticizing government attempts to undermine democratic institutions and pointing to an ideological battle that risks altering the essence of Judaism and Israeli identity. Harari also stresses the importance of reconciling support for Palestinian rights with the defense of Israel's existence, challenging the narrative that these positions are inherently contradictory.
Catch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week online and on US public television. Check local listings.
- Modern antisemitism on the rise ›
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- Why human beings are so easily fooled by AI, psychologist Steven Pinker explains ›
- Steven Pinker shares his "relentless optimism" about human progress ›
- From CRISPR to cloning: The science of new humans ›
- Yuval Noah Harari: Netanyahu's 'Deep State' fears enabled Oct 7 attack ›
- Israel, Hamas and US in impasse over cease-fire deal - GZERO Media ›