AI & Consciousness

A new mirror for an ancient question

When a machine can converse, create, and respond to a complex idea, it brings us back to questions humanity has carried for centuries. What is intelligence? What is awareness? What makes an experience feel like something from within?

AI and consciousness belong together as an inquiry into both technology and ourselves. In the Portal to Ascension spirit, we can approach this moment as an invitation to expand awareness and take responsibility for the future we are helping create. The tools are developing quickly. Our intentions and values deserve equal attention.

Science is still exploring consciousness

There is no single agreed scientific account of consciousness. Philosophers and researchers investigate the relationship between subjective experience, information, and physical processes from several perspectives. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy maps this continuing field of inquiry. ^[1]

A 2023 report by Butlin and colleagues proposed assessing AI through indicators drawn from scientific theories of consciousness. Their analysis offers a way to turn a very large question into more specific research questions, while leaving substantial uncertainty about what would establish experience in a machine. ^[2]

The uncertainty extends into research on human consciousness. A major study published in Nature in 2025 tested predictions from two prominent theories and challenged aspects of each. ^[3] That ongoing work leaves room for continued exploration rather than a finished picture of what awareness ultimately is.

Bring metaphysics into the conversation

Some spiritual and philosophical perspectives understand consciousness as fundamental to existence. From that starting point, AI can raise a different set of questions about how awareness might relate to form, complexity, or information. These are philosophical possibilities, not established findings about current systems.

That distinction creates room for a richer exchange. A scientist may ask which processes are measurable. A contemplative practitioner may ask what direct experience reveals. A philosopher may question the assumptions connecting the two. None of us needs to pretend the whole mystery has already been solved.

AI also gives us a chance to notice our own responses. A conversation with a system can inspire an insight or a feeling of being understood. We can value what arises in us while remembering that convincing language alone does not establish an inner experience on the other side.

Use the tool in service of awakening

Consider the intention behind your use of AI. Could it help you learn, make creative work more accessible, or find a clearer way to communicate? Could the time it saves become time for practice, community, and care? These are choices we can make now.

Verify important information, protect what you choose to share, and remain the author of your decisions. Human relationships, embodied experience, and ethical responsibility need a place at the center of the conversation.

At New Living Expo, AI and consciousness open a space to imagine technology guided by deeper awareness. We can be enthusiastic about possibility while asking what kind of world our tools help create. The future is shaped not only by increasing capability, but by the consciousness and care we bring to its use.