For many, AI is a religious experience (rerun)

Published: Jan. 1, 2024, 11:45 a.m.

Artificial intelligence can feel abstract, so we\u2019ve come to depend on certain narratives to try and make sense of it all. Some of the language we use to describe AI and our interactions with it is rooted in religious ideas. Are you bracing for the apocalypse? Have you been blessed by the algorithm or consulted with a Robo Rabbi lately? The deification of AI, whether it\u2019s done consciously or not, is something Beth Singler studies as a professor of digital religions at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. Marketplace\u2019s Lily Jamali spoke to Singler about religious tropes in the narratives we consume and share about AI.