The rise of generative AI invites us to confront a range of questions that touch upon what we perceive as the very core of our humanity. While we have all grown accustomed to using artificial intelligence to help us produce various kinds of utilitarian texts (email being the paradigmatic example), we seem far more reluctant to accept that this new tool might likewise take over when it comes to the creative use of language.
AI can write an email or summarise a report, but can it write a novel or a poem? We know that it can, if we limit ourselves to the sheer factuality of the result (there is a text, and it is a “novel” or a “poem”) – but are we truly prepared to call such a result a novel or a poem?
Ryan Ruby’s visit at the Institute, thanks to professor Carolyn Biltoft, offers an ideal opportunity to further explore these fascinating questions. A writer and critic, Ryan Ruby is notably the author of Context Collapse: A Poem Containing a History of Poetry (2024), a singular work in the form of a verse-essay that emphasises the material conditions, communication networks, and socio-economic structures underpinning the production of poetry throughout history.
From the status of the author to the experience of the reader, through the place of poetry in a world obsessed with speed and efficiency, we will attempt to shed light on several key aspects of this broader reflection on the complex relationship between human and artificial intelligence.
Ultimately, throughout this conversation, what will be at stake is what defines our humanity: our imagination, our freedom, and our lived experience.
➡️Upon registration (limited seats): forms.gle/4t91JRVG8KQMLwxr5
This event is jointly organised by the MINT, the Tech Hub and the International History and Politics Department of the Institute.
