Profs & Pints Northern Virginia: Spiritual Robots

Profs and Pints Northern Virginia presents: “Spiritual Robots,” an exploration of artificial intelligence, spirituality, and the question of whether humanity can coexist with conscious machines, with Philip Frana, interdisciplinary studies professor at James Madison University and editor of the Encyclopedia of Artificial Intelligence: The Past, Present, and Future of AI.

How might our perspective shift if we embrace the idea that machines are both intelligent and conscious? Can artificial intelligence possess spiritual qualities and replicate spiritual practices and experiences?

Questions like these are as old as tales of the Golem, Pinocchio, and the Tin Man. Increasingly, however, they are being answered by contemporary worship practices, AI personhood, and the digital afterlife industry.

Artificial intelligence raises profound questions about the nature of consciousness, the essence of the soul, and the implications of creating machines that teach us about our own humanity and moral responsibilities.

Gain an understanding of this new frontier in our understanding of mind and soul with Professor Philip Frana, who has published extensively on topics related to computing and society for more than two decades.

He’ll talk about how robotics and AI labs are benefiting from the insights of theological advisors. Computer scientists are building robotic spiritual guides and automated clergy. A recent presidential candidate views AI as a crucial component in his platform to solve America’s social and moral problems. And churches and shrines that elevate machines above humankind have been founded around the world.

Professor Frana will explain how emerging digital technologies could undermine human values, autonomy, and spiritual beliefs. He’ll argue that we need to expand the ethical and social compass of AI to consider questions about the future of organized religions and the prospect of algorithmic anti-humanism. (Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. Talk starts 30 minutes later.)

Image: “Robot Renaissance 1,” generated by Philip Frana using DALL·E 3.