Holding History Podcast

Author: Holding History

The Holding History Podcast presents fast-paced, bookish conversations about the fascinating and, sometimes puzzling, ways we record, share, and preserve cultural knowledge. In each episode, Joshua Calhoun, Sarah Marty, and their book-loving guests tell new stories about old media.
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Language: en

Genres: History

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AI and the Human
Episode 12
Monday, 13 October, 2025

In this episode, we speak with acclaimed essayist Meghan O’Gieblyn about the evolving relationship between artificial intelligence and the human imagination. Meghan is the author of God Human Animal Machine and the essay collection Interior States, which won the 2018 Believer Book Award. She writes essays and criticism for Harper's Magazine, The New Yorker, WIRED, The New York Review of Books, n+1, The Point, The Baffler, and Bookforum. Relying on Meghan’s research and background in Western history and philosophy, religion, and technology, the conversation grapples with what it means to be human in this specific historical moment. As the conversation progresses, our own definition of the human emerges emphasizing the messy, vulnerable, and suboptimal characteristics that make us who we are. To learn more about the texts, ideas, and people mentioned in this interview, and to access a transcript, visit the episode guide on HoldingHistory.org. Thanks for listening!