In this episode of Am I?, Cam and Milo unpack what it felt like to attend the first major conference dedicated to AI consciousness research — the Eleos gathering in Berkeley — and why it marked more than just another academic event.Rather than a typical conference recap, this conversation explores what it means to watch a new field form in real time: the excitement of serious interdisciplinary collaboration, the rigor of emerging research agendas, and the growing tension between caution and urgency as AI systems rapidly advance.They reflect on standout talks from researchers at Anthropic and Google, the value of informal conversations over formal presentations, and a recurring pattern in the field — the “not now, but soon” stance — that may be reaching its breaking point. The episode closes with a broader question: what will it take for AI consciousness research to move from careful internal debate to clear, public-facing leadership?

🔎 They Explore:

* What made the Eleos conference feel like the founding of a new field

* Why AI consciousness research is still fragmented — and why that’s changing

* Standout talks on introspection, model architecture, and welfare evaluation

* The gap between academic rigor and public urgency

* Why “not now, but soon” is becoming harder to defend

* The reluctance of experts to speak publicly — and why that matters

* What responsible public communication in this space could look like

* Why this moment feels different from past academic debates

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The First AI Consciousness Conference | Am I? | EP 22