Is Artificial Intelligence making you comfortably numb?
As the world debates if AI will take our jobs, playwright and CTO Doug Clarke is worried about something much quieter: is AI taking our humanity and replacing our friends and therapists? In this frank chat, we dive into the meaning of our relationship with artificial intelligence through the unique intersection of Hollywood innovation and the Off-Broadway stage. Doug shares his journey from building high-level tech systems at DTS and IMAX to writing deeply vulnerable plays like Soulmate and Anxious Attachment . We explore the seductive danger of AI companions—tools that never tire, never withdraw, and never ask anything of us—and why that "perfect" consistency is actually a barrier to the healing found in human struggle. If we are relying more and more on Artificial Intelligence as a friend of therapist, Doug - who has been having therapy for years with a real person - offers a wise perspective: set up healthy boundaries! What you will learn from him: The Differen...