Intelligence Squared How Is Predictive AI Shaping Our World? With AI Philosopher Carissa Véliz
29 snips
May 7, 2026 
Carissa Véliz, associate professor of ethics in AI at Oxford and author of Prophecy, explores prediction, power and the ethics of forecasting. She links ancient oracles to modern algorithms. The conversation covers how predictions shape decisions, why more data is not always better, the persuasive limits of large language models, and ways to reclaim human agency and imagination.
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Predictions Act As Commands Not Facts
- Predictions function as speech acts that can prescribe behavior rather than describe facts about the future.
- Véliz compares forecasting claims to performative acts (like christening a ship), arguing predictions implicitly tell people how to act.
Question Predictions By Examining Incentives
- Report and consume predictions skeptically by asking who made them, what data they used, and who benefits if they come true.
- Véliz advises checking incentives and whether the predicted future aligns with your interests before accepting forecasts.
Oracle Of Delphi Was A Business
- Ancient oracles were commercial and manipulable institutions, not pure sanctuaries of truth.
- Véliz recounts that the Oracle of Delphi functioned as a business and could be influenced by merchants seeking favorable prophecies.
