What happens when the work you’ve built your identity around can be done faster, and sometimes better, by AI?
For Dr. Christopher Watkin, philosopher, theologian, and associate professor at Monash University, AI’s greatest impact may be the questions it forces us to ask: What is work for? Where do we find value when productivity is no longer scarce? And what does this moment reveal about what it means to be human?
In this episode, Daniel and Dr. Watkin discuss “humanity of the gaps,” the risk of defining ourselves only by what AI can’t yet do, and why the ease AI brings to work is both a gift and a challenge. They explore how AI shifts work from process to product, and how this moment can open rare opportunities for deeper public conversations about meaning, value, and the good life.
🔑 What You’ll Learn in This Episode
- ✅ Why AI makes old philosophical questions impossible to ignore
- ✅ How “infinite efficiency” changes the purpose of work
- ✅ What “humanity of the gaps” reveals about our self-definition
- ✅ Why effort, friction, and process still matter in a world of perfect output
- ✅ How AI can help us see assumptions we didn’t know we had
🔗 Resources & Links
- 🤝 Connect with Dr. Watkin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-watkin
- 🌐 Explore Dr. Watkin’s work: https://christopherwatkin.com
- 🐦 Follow Dr. Watkin on X: https://x.com/DrChrisWatkin
- 📺 Watch Dr. Watkin's AI relational audit video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GN62ekMtlJg&ab_channel=ChristopherWatkin
- 📩 Subscribe to the Artificial Insights newsletter for highlights: https://manary.haus/podcast/#haus
- 👉 Have a guest in mind? Reach out to Daniel at daniel@manary.haus
💬 Learned something worth sharing? Pass this episode along to someone asking deep questions about AI and its place in our lives.
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