Do You Want to Become a Vampire? — with L.A. Paul

How do we decide whether to undergo a transformative experience
when we don’t know how that experience will change us? This is
the central question explored by Yale philosopher and cognitive
scientist L.A. Paul. 


Paul uses the prospect of becoming a vampire to illustrate the
conundrum: let's say Dracula offers you the chance to become a
vampire. You might be confident you'll love it, but you also know
you'll become a different person with different preferences.
Whose preferences do you prioritize: yours now, or yours after
becoming a vampire? Similarly, whose preferences do we prioritize
when deciding how to engage with technology and social media:
ours now, or ours after becoming users — to the point of
potentially becoming attention-seeking vampires? 


In this episode with L.A. Paul, we're raising the stakes of the
social media conversation — from technology that steers our time
and attention, to technology that fundamentally transforms who we
are and what we want. Tune in as Paul, Tristan Harris, and Aza
Raskin explore the complexity of transformative experiences, and
how to approach their ethical design.