Why We Need a Human Future Lab
We live in a time of accelerating change. Artificial intelligence is reshaping how we work, learn, and relate. Climate systems are shifting in ways we barely understand. Space is no longer the domain of science fiction, but of billionaires and geopolitical strategy. And through it all, the question lingers:
What kind of future are we building — and who is it for?
This newsletter is my attempt to think through that question, slowly and seriously.
I come to this work as a philosopher and a technologist. For two decades, I worked as a software developer and systems administrator. For another two, I taught philosophy at the university level. I’ve written about ethics, AI, technology; and I’ve taught university courses on computer programming in various languages, built online courses, and explored how AI is changing education. I am the author of “The Responsibility Gap,” the article that introduced the question of a responsibility gap for AI to the philosophical debate, and of various books that you can find here:
https://andreasmatthias.com/blog/books/
I currently operate multiple Substack newsletters and YouTube channels, among them Daily Philosophy:
Human Future Lab is where all these threads come together.
It’s not just about AI, though we’ll talk about that. It’s about the broader ethical, political, and ecological questions that technology raises. It’s about how we think, how we live, and how we imagine the future.
Some of the topics I am exploring here include:
The ethics of automation and the future of work
How AI is reshaping human attention, agency, and education
The ecological footprint of digital infrastructure
The philosophy of space exploration
Critical thinking in the age of misinformation
What ancient thinkers can teach us about modern tech
This won’t be a daily newsletter. I’ll publish about once a month to start, with occasional videos and downloadable resources. My goal is not to chase trends, but to offer thoughtful, grounded reflections that help us navigate the future with clarity and care.
If that sounds like something you’d value, I’d be honored to have you as a subscriber.
Let’s think about the future — not just what it will be, but what it should be.
— Dr Andreas Matthias, Founder, Human Future Lab
