Why Deepak Chopra is not afraid of AI
Summary
Indian-American author & new-age guru Deepak Chopra talks to Lounge about why he's built his own AI platform and how his digital twin may have just the answers a user needs
The world may still be grappling with a latent fear of artificial intelligence (AI) but well-known author and new-age guru Deepak Chopra sees huge potential in tapping its powers for holistic well-being. In An Optimistic Conversation with AI, an article published on his website, www.deepakchopra.com, he writes “...AI in its present flawed state is quite capable of acting in the role of research assistant, therapist, confidant, and guru. You can even prompt it by saying, “You are my confidant" or “Talk to me as if you are a trained psychologist. The advantages of using AI in these roles are multiple. You can ask as many questions as you want and count on being heard." Chopra’s new book, Digital Dharma, explores how ‘AI can elevate spiritual intelligence and personal wellbeing’. But that’s not the newsy bit.
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In the past couple of months, what’s been making headlines is Chopra’s new venture into AI called Cyberhuman.ai. Co-founded with Poonacha Machaiah who’s CEO of The Chopra Foundation, the platform’s vision as per the website ‘integrates AI-powered diagnostics, an AI-driven digital twin, secure blockchain-backed data management along with spiritual tools’ to offer customized wellbeing programmes for users that can be availed on subscription (the prices range from $1 for an hour to $6 for a month). What’s unique about the venture — currently in beta mode—is that the data that the platform relies on is culled from the extensive work of Chopra alone.
“For over 40 years, I have done tens of thousands of videos on YouTube, I have answered questions (from readers) through my columns in the San Francisco Chronicle and the London Times. Additionally, I answer one question on Instagram every day. This is in addition to the 90+ books that I have written. Given all this content and the fact that I have people bombarding me with questions on a daily basis, we thought we could use AI to personalize solutions to people’s dilemmas whether its related to physical health or financial, mental, social, community or corporate wellbeing," says Chopra in an interview with Lounge during a recent visit to Bengaluru. Edited excerpts:
Would you say you this AI platform is an efficient provider of life solutions because Deepak Chopra can’t be in a hundred places by himself?
Yes. I have given many lectures over the years where I have had people asking me questions ranging from ‘My mother died, what should I do?’ to ‘My boyfriend is not returning my calls, please help’. I have answered them too. Today, I may not have the time to answer every question that every person has individually, but with DigitalDeepak.ai, which is my digital twin, you can ask any number of questions you have. You can even engage in long, deeply insightful conversations with it daily.
You talk about the wisdom contained in our ancient texts along with AI and machine learning. What would you tell someone who is confused about the two seemingly extreme ideas merging together?
AI can access the Vedas. It can access the sages of the Upanishads, it can access Zen monks, it can access the mind of Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, Rumi or all of the great spiritual masters. There is no human being who can access all of these thought leaders in spirituality, so to put it simply, it gives you access to the minds of the greatest spiritual teachers that have existed.
Are you then saying that we shouldn’t be viewing AI as an unknown villain but rather as an enabler for a better way of life?
Yes. Any technology that humans have created has both divine and diabolical facets to it. Had we not discovered fire there wouldn’t be the steam engine, nor would we have had the Industrial Revolution. Between 1886 and 1903, humanity saw four things that were never seen before: the light bulb, the automobile, the airplane and the telephone. These things changed the world in a span of 20 years. Right now, with AI, we’re leapfrogging our cultural and social and biological evolution in a way that has never happened before.
Holistic wellness or wellbeing is largely an inner journey but with your AI platform, you are asking me to tap into an external resource for guidance. Isn’t that paradoxical? How is it different, say from Youtube in terms of resources?
If there’s one word to describe spirituality, it would be ‘self-awareness’. Today, people don’t have self-awareness, they have selfie-awareness. So, what we want to do is enhance your self-awareness by pointing at the map but you have to do the practice. Now, you will find an entire cache of guided meditations on YouTube but these are pre-canned. Here, it’s going to be customised to your needs. You can ask for a 5-minute meditation to improve your sleep or a 3-minute meditation for stress and you will get exactly that.
You’ve created a digital twin with Deepak Chopra.ai that offers answers to the user in your voice. At a time where everyone wants instant remedies, do you want the platform to become the go-to for youngsters?
Deepak Chopra.ai is not about instant remedies. I’ve never done anything in my life which is about instant remedies. Right now what you see is the madness of war, terrorism, climate change, social injustice, chronic disease, suicide and an absence of joy. So, the long-term idea or the bigger goal of this venture is to reach a billion people to enable a more peaceful, just, sustainable and healthier world.
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