Podcast
AI Unfiltered
Hosted by AI Unfiltered · EN
AI Unfiltered is a light-hearted and occasionally thought-provoking podcast about anything and everything relating to our modern digital society. Technology, current affairs, language, people, and whatever else happens to be current or pops into our heads. Hosted by Ian Bowie and Michael Stormbom.
21episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Cognitive Surrender
1w ago00:20:03Tap to summarizeThis week Ian and Michael discuss “cognitive surrender” — the increasingly common habit of accepting whatever an AI chatbot tells us without much scrutiny. From there the conversation moves into critical thinking, the uneasy role of AI in recruitment and hiring, and the broader question of whether convenience is eroding our willingness to verify information for ourselves. We also revisit one of the podcast’s recurring themes: AI chess algorithms. A mildly sceptical look at what happens when outsourcing thought becomes just a little too easy. (This description was written with the help of AI - because outsourcing thought is indeed just a little too easy...)
Transcribe →Consumerism, the Afterlife, and Other Ponderings
2w ago00:19:34Tap to summarizeThis week Ian and Michael begin with the suspicion that smartphones may have reached the end of meaningful innovation. From there the conversation drifts through second-hand furniture, the growing use of food banks in a wealthy society, consumer culture, Turku’s long-discussed tramway, and — with generous spoilers — the moral philosophy hidden inside the TV series The Good Place. (This description was written with the help of AI)
Transcribe →Convenience Now, Laurels Later
3w ago00:20:22Tap to summarizeIan and Michael discuss the ethical aspects of using AI-generated art instead of human artists, the use of AI and photo manipulation in marketing, and the dangers of resting on one's laurels after prolonged success. And, at long last, our AI-generated contributor Emma Williams returns with another instalment of Emma's Artificial Reflections!
Transcribe →Star Wars and Other Bits and Bobs
May 500:20:20Tap to summarizeThis week, Ian and Michael begin with Rogue One and the practice of digitally resurrecting actors from the original Star Wars films. That leads to a broader discussion about AI-generated likenesses, the ethics of bringing performers back from the dead, and whether future films might simply recycle familiar faces indefinitely. Ever coherent and never prone to tangents, we also cover a host of other topics — including bachelor taxes, Finnish tourism and industry, and a brief excursion into Norse mythology. (This description was written with the help of AI)
Transcribe →Dial-Up Memories and Broken Toes
Apr 2100:19:53Tap to summarizeThis week’s episode begins with an unscheduled interruption when a chair, a foot, and a small toe collide — setting the tone for a slightly chaotic conversation. From there we wander through AI-generated spam, early internet memories involving dial-up modems and accidental faxes, and the generational gap between growing up with computers and discovering them later in life. Along the way we drift into laptops versus phones, collectible comic books, and the curious problem of remembering actors’ names. In other words: a fairly typical mixture of technology, nostalgia, and mild distraction. (This description was written with the help of AI)
Transcribe →Housing, Conan Doyle, and Other Assorted Topics
Apr 1400:20:59Tap to summarizeThis week, Ian and Michael tackle a host of topics, including housing and affordability, Conan Doyle conspiracy theories, and AI and innovation and the notion that it's not necessarily advantageous to be the first player in a market.
Transcribe →Remote Work, Coffee Machines, Germany
Apr 700:20:00Tap to summarizeThis week we start with a small complaint about remote work — or rather the claim that working from home might be bad for the economy because people aren’t out buying lunches, clothes, and after-work drinks. From there the conversation wanders into price levels and inflation. We also detour into coffee machines, office habits, and travels to Germany. (This description was written with the help of AI)
Transcribe →The Name-dropping Episode
Mar 3100:19:35Tap to summarizeThis week, Ian and Michael drift through a range of cultural references — actors, composers, old arcade games, and the curious limits of how many famous names any of us can actually remember. Along the way we reflect on fading movie stardom, the strange selectiveness of cultural memory, and the tiny fraction of people who end up being remembered at all. As usual, the conversation wanders further afield, touching on early video games, DNA testing services, and which jobs might survive the advance of AI and robots. (This description was written with the help of AI)
Transcribe →AI Anxieties
Mar 2400:19:38Tap to summarizeThis week we dig into “AI fatigue” and “AI anxiety”; familiar enough to anyone trying to keep up with the constant churn of tools, hype, and expectations. The conversation circles around whether these concerns are widespread or mostly confined to a small corner of the population, with detours into work, hype cycles, and the limits of human attention. Along the way we veer into broader territory: bubbles (both AI and personal), environmental indifference, questionable television, and the possibility that most people simply aren’t that worried about any of it. (This description was written with help of AI)
Transcribe →Blessed are the Contentmakers
Mar 1000:19:34Tap to summarizeThis week’s conversation starts with a small moral dilemma: why is it so easy to consume endless hours of online content, yet oddly difficult to part with even a few euros to support the people making it? From there we wander through the economics of the modern “content economy” and the accumulation of monthly fees that comes with living online. Along the way we reflect on how value is assigned (or not) to digital work, whether audiences have simply hit subscription fatigue, and what happens when AI joins the ranks of the contentmakers. As usual, the discussion drifts into neighbouring territory: the changing role of universities, the consumerist society, and the slightly unsettling sense that information - and perhaps expertise - is becoming both cheaper and harder to price. (This description was generated with the help of AI; this episode features AI-generated speech)
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