MIT professor and bestselling author Sherry Turkle will join mindfulness pioneer and bestselling author Jon Kabat-Zinn on October 14 at All Souls Church in New York City for a live conversation celebrating Turkle's new book, Artificial Intimacy: Who We Become When We Talk to Machines. The event, produced by Steve Stein and WisdomFeed Publishing, marks the third conversation between the two thinkers, following two online episodes of the StreetSmart Wisdom Podcast. This time, they will meet in person at 80th Street and Lexington Avenue, with both in-person and livestream attendance available. Information and registration can be found at https://wisdomfeed.thrivecart.com/artificial-intimacy/.
Published September 29 by Little, Brown and Company, Artificial Intimacy examines what happens as artificial intelligence moves beyond information and productivity and increasingly enters the deeply human territory of companionship, empathy, advice, loneliness and relationships. Turkle, the Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology at MIT, has spent decades researching the relationship between people and technology. Her new book asks what it means when people turn to machines not simply to accomplish tasks, but for forms of companionship, counsel and emotional connection once associated with human relationships.
The October 14 conversation brings together Turkle's decades of research with Kabat-Zinn's decades of work on mindfulness, awareness and presence. Kabat-Zinn, a scientist, bestselling author and meditation teacher who founded Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, has played a major role in bringing mindfulness into medicine, health care and mainstream culture. Their earlier podcast conversations explored what happens as the analog world collides with the digital one, including questions of artificial intelligence, empathy, mindfulness, human connection and the future of humanity.
During their first StreetSmart Wisdom conversation, Turkle described the urgency of the moment: "This is a break the glass moment. How are we going to govern? How are we going to think about the challenge we face?" Kabat-Zinn approached the same moment through the relationship between the digital world and our analog humanity: "What is happening now is the convergence of the analog and the digital in such a way that we had best... realize the full dimensionality and potential of the analog world before... we lose it to... fake empathy from machines."
Turkle also posed a question that has become increasingly central as conversational AI enters everyday life: "The question for me is, is pretend empathy enough? And how do we as people who have this extraordinary gift for real empathy because of... the arc of a human life... How do we connect?" These questions are at the heart of Artificial Intimacy, which examines what happens when people begin turning to machines for emotional connection.
The event is significant because it puts Turkle's new book at the center of a continuing dialogue between two leading thinkers on technology and mindfulness. As AI becomes more integrated into daily life, the conversation raises critical issues about governance, human connection, and the potential loss of genuine empathy. The fact that the event is being held in a church sanctuary and livestreamed suggests a broad audience eager to engage with these questions. Turkle will sign copies of Artificial Intimacy following the program.
WisdomFeed Publishing, founded by Steve Stein, creates audiobooks, podcasts, journals, courses and live experiences at the intersection of technology and humanity. With StreetSmart Wisdom Podcast: IRL, the company is bringing Turkle and Kabat-Zinn together for the third chapter of their continuing conversation, furthering its mission of taking ancient ideas down to street level. Stein is also a founding member of the Audio Publishers Association, and his current projects include The Sneaker Tree and the newly launched Brooklyn Playdate, the Original Analog Activities Nostalgia Kit and No Phone Zone.
The October 14 event will be held at All Souls Church, 1157 Lexington Avenue, New York City. In-person and livestream attendance are available. For information and registration, visit https://wisdomfeed.thrivecart.com/artificial-intimacy/.
