October 14, 15, and 16, 2025
Broadcast Live from the Dalai Lama Library and Archives, Dharamsala, India
What is the potential of artificial intelligence to alleviate suffering, advance equity, and support human and planetary flourishing—and what risks does it pose to health, education, work, politics, and climate? At stake is not only how AI evolves, but how we as human beings shape its trajectory through the ethical qualities and agency we bring to it.
In this dialogue among leading scientists, scholars, contemplative practitioners, business leaders, and policymakers, participants examined our understanding of the living mind and the evolving relationship between human and machine intelligence. The gathering invited reflection across diverse wisdom and knowledge traditions on how compassion, responsibility, and ethical discernment might guide the development and use of emerging technologies.
Across three days of conversation, presenters explored the nature of the human mind as a foundation for considering five key topics and a set of generative questions about AI:
- Minds – What is intelligence? What distinguishes living minds from artificial minds?
- (Dis)entanglement and meaningful relationships – How are human minds intimately entangled with artificial minds? What ethical considerations emerge from the deep entanglement of human and machine? What are the potential benefits?
- Collective narratives and possible futures – How do the stories we tell about AI create self-fulfilling prophecies? What are the risks regarding human survival and the possible replacement of human rationality and awareness?
- Diversity and ethics – How might a more complex understanding of intelligence impact the AI systems we develop and the regulations we put in place? Is it possible to embed ethical values into AI?
- Education – What are the potential risks of AI to young people? How is AI shaping the youngest minds in terms of attention, concentration, cognitive biases, and emotion regulation?
Participants emphasized that the future of AI is not predetermined but profoundly shaped by the narratives we construct about it—and about ourselves. The dialogue marked not an endpoint but a beginning—an invitation to continue shaping our shared future with awareness and care.
We invite you to watch recordings from this multi-day event below.
Dialogue Sessions
Morning Welcome
Minds | His Eminence Khangser Rinpoche, Shaun Gallagher, and Murray Shanahan, with Marc-Henri Deroche as facilitator
(Dis)Entanglement & Meaningful Relationships | Peter Hershock, Anat Perry, and Geshe Lodoe Sangpo, with Kate Nave as facilitator
Contemplative Practice | Jack Kornfield
Collective Narratives & Possible Futures | Thupten Jinpa, Luc Steels, and Emily Bender, with Molly Crockett as facilitator
Diversity & Ethics | Iason Gabriel, Merve Hickok, Geshe Thabkhe, and Sasha Luccioni, with Geshe Lodoe Sangpo as facilitator
Education | Ani Choyang, Robert Cummings, and Chiara Mascarello, with Marieke van Vugt as facilitator
Closing Summary | facilitated by Luc Steels
Contemplative Practice | Ani Choyang, Geshe Sangpo, Geshe Thabkhe
Presenters
Emily M. Bender, PhD University of Washington
Ani Choyang, Jangchub Choeling Nunnery
Molly Crockett, PhD, Princeton University
Robert Cummings, PhD, University of Mississippi
Marc-Henri Deroche, PhD, Kyoto University
Iason Gabriel, PhD, Google DeepMind
Shaun Gallagher, PhD, University of Memphis
Peter Hershock, PhD, East-West Center
Merve Hickok, Center for AI and Digital Policy
Thupten Jinpa, PhD, Mind & Life Institute Board Chair; Compassion Institute Founder; English Translator of His Holiness the Dalai Lama
His Eminence Khangser Rinpoche, Gyuto Monastery, Thangkar Dechen Choling Monastic Institute
Sasha Luccioni, PhD, Hugging Face
Chiara Mascarello, PhD, University of Padua
Kate (Kathryn) Nave, PhD, University of Edinburgh
Anat Perry, PhD, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Geshe Lodoe Sangpo, Gaden Jangtse Monastery
Murray Shanahan, PhD, Imperial College London, Google DeepMind
Luc Steels, PhD, University of Brussels
Geshe Thabkhe, Sera Jay Monastery
Marieke van Vugt, PhD, University of Groningen
Our deepest thanks extend to Mind & Life Europe for its vision and partnership in shaping this Dialogue. We are also grateful to The Dalai Lama Trust, the Hershey Family Foundation, the Adam J. Weissman Foundation, the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the Dalai Lama Library and Archives, and Norbulinka Institute for their generous support.
In this Year of Compassion, and in celebration of the 90th year of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, we offer sincere gratitude for all the benefactors who make our work possible.
Support the legacy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and help advance the dialogue between science and contemplative wisdom with a gift to the Mind & Life Institute.
