One of the hallmarks of humanity is our ability to pass down cultural information and knowledge over thousands of years. Philosopher and author Martin Puchner says the lifeblood of culture lies in how we take pieces of information and combine them into new ideas and ways of inhabiting the world. Martin talks with Lilah about how that culture is formed, and how he sees the emergence of generative AI as a new tool for remixing cultural ideas from human history. This conversation was recorded in front of a live audience at the FT Weekend Festival in Washington, DC.

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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap and we’re on X @lifeandartpod. You can email the show at lifeandart@ft.com.

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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):

– Martin’s custom GPTs where you can chat with Socrates or the Buddha, and more: https://www.martinpuchner.com/custom-gpts-and-online-education.html

– Martin’s book on culture: https://www.martinpuchner.com/culture-story-of-us.html

– The FT’s John Thornhill on Martin’s work: https://on.ft.com/3JQEf29

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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart

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Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Using AI as a tool for creativity

Life and Art from FT Weekend