“It seems clear that, unless we hit a huge unforeseen limit on the further development of AI technologies, they are going to play a much more significant role in our lives. Why? Because this is a textbook case of a future that’s already here, just not widely distributed.
“Ultimately, we are going to transition from a world where Western conceptions of enlightened individualism have been the load-bearing philosophical framework, to a world driven by literal techno-animism. ‘Techno-animism’ can be defined as a practical psychological and social shift in how we humans might relate to our digital tools and environment as they become agents in our lives.
“In an ‘animistic’ frame, animals, plants, places, objects and phenomena are seen as actors with perceived intention. We will take on the techno-animist cognitive framework, because software speaks, it suggests, it remembers, it anticipates, it negotiates, it persuades, it acts, it possesses its own agency. And, well, we’re already there today – it’s just still nascent.
“But what will something as modern as ‘effective resilience’ even mean in a more techno-animistic world? To the degree that it’s possible to answer at all, I’d argue it becomes much more a matter of intentional design than brilliant engineering at this point.
“The lamp has already been rubbed and now, from a systems standpoint, we’re in the awkward position of trying to steady the world as millions of powerful techno-animistic entities are released.
“We no longer get to decide whether they exist. But we may still be able to decide, at a collective level, what kinds of entities they are permitted to become – and what kinds of relationships we normalize with them. I am only half-joking when I say that it might be time to establish a ‘Humans Union.’
“That said, if I had a magic lamp, my own one wish to get us through this would be re-instilling a pro-social culture into tech.
“Remember when people actually liked the internet? Nearly everything that people loved early on was produced by a culture of hippie nerds interested in the ways digital technologies could be used to empower people. Replacing that with a more extractive culture has not done us any favors.”
This essay was written in January 2026 in reply to the question: “AI systems are likely to begin to play a much more significant role in shaping our decisions, work and daily lives. How might individuals and societies embrace, resist and/or struggle with such transformative change? As opportunities and challenges arise due to the positive, neutral and negative ripple effects of digital change, what cognitive, emotional, social and ethical capacities must we cultivate to ensure effective resilience? What practices and resources will enable resilience? What actions must we take right now to reinforce human and systems resilience? What new vulnerabilities might arise and what new coping strategies are important to teach and nurture?” This and 200-plus additional essay responses are included in the 2026 report “Building a Human Resilience Infrastructure for the AI Age.”