

AI & Society Monthly "Book" Club
Downstream Discussion Club
A discussion group for thinking about what AI means to society and what it’s doing to the world it's been released into - to the way we work, learn, connect, and the texture of everyday life.
Each session explores a different role AI is playing in our lives, and asks: is that the role we'd choose for it?
Relevant readings will be provided ahead of each reading, but are optional and joiners are welcome to just discuss guided questions during the sessions!
SESSION 2 (July) — AI as colleague: tool, manager, or something else?
The promise was a tool that would free us up. The reality, for many, is something that has reshaped what work means — who does it, how much of it there is, and what gets lost when AI steps in. Is AI a collaborator we direct, or something closer to a manager quietly setting the terms? This session we'll look at what AI is actually doing inside workplaces, from the worker's perspective and the CEO's.
Readings:
• "AI Power Users Can't Stop Grinding" — Celia Ford, Transformer
• "How AI Is Transforming Work at Anthropic" — Anthropic
• Optional: "Work and Meaning" (Section 5) — Dario Amodei, Machines of Loving Grace
Please note this event is only open to AI Snack Club paying members. To join, sign-up here: aisnackclub.com