Christoph Thun-Hohenstein

"From Generative to Regenerative AI: A New Eco-social “Mindset“ for Artificial Intelligence"

There is a strong case for considering generative AI already a general-purpose technology, which will spread much faster than such technological milestones in the past and will also reach a much wider public. “We anticipate that generative AI will speed up scientific discovery, help innovators and engineers build better, and give creative people new ways to express themselves and move their audiences," Andrew McAfee wrote in his report The Economic Impact of Generative AI, published in spring 2024. Against this background, it is key that regeneration becomes a priority for using this new general-purpose technology at all levels. The essence of regeneration is giving back more to the earth than has been taken from it and establishing the conditions for a way of life and an economic culture that progresses not at the expense of nature, but in complete harmony with it.

In order to shape such a new eco-social mindset for AI and turn generative AI into a driver of regeneration over the entire spectrum of human civilization, we especially need the imagination and creativity of artists in different fields, ideally collaborating with scientists and researchers. The keynote will provide examples of how to promote the regenerative turn of generative AI and, to this end, how to benefit from human-AI team intelligence.

Bio

Ambassador Christoph Thun-Hohenstein (born 1960) is Director General for International Cultural Relations at the Austrian Foreign Ministry. He studied law, political science, and history of art at the University of Vienna. He was Director of the Austrian Cultural Forum New York from 1999 to 2007. From 2007 to 2011, he served as Managing Director of departure, the Creative Agency of the City of Vienna. From 2011 to 2021, Thun-Hohenstein was General Director of the MAK – Austrian Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna. He initiated the Vienna Biennale for Change, which he directed from 2014 until 2022. Most recently, he initiated the Vienna Climate Biennale, which took place for the first time in 2024.