MLn Club (ML Reading Group) #20: The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist Film Screening!
Welcome to Week 20: The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist Film Screening!
This week is a bit unconventional as instead of reading a paper, we'll be watching a film! Join us on CMU campus in Porter Hall 226C at 7 PM!
The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist (2026), directed by Daniel Roher and Charlie Tyrell, examines the tension between AI's existential risks and radical potential through the personal lens of an expectant father. Featuring interviews with over 40 key figures—including Sam Altman, Demis Hassabis, Yoshua Bengio, Ilya Sutskever, Timnit Gebru, and Eliezer Yudkowsky—the documentary maps out the spectrum between doomerism and techno-optimism as rapidly scaling capabilities collide with institutional safety, governance, and human readiness.
📖 Reading Recommendations, Questions, or Comments? Contact us here!
🔎 View past meeting notes here.
What's this?
A super warm group of folks discussing their favorite topics!
In the first half, we host an optional quiet reading space
In the second half, we have a discussion where people can talk about what they found interesting about the reading and ask questions about things they didn't understand
When/Where:
CMU campus, Porter Hall 226C
7 PM start film screening, 8:40 PM start discussion, 9:00 PM wrap up
Here's how it usually goes:
7:00 PM — arrival and settling in
8:00 PM — introductions
8:10 PM — discussion time
9:00 PM — wrap up then open discussion
Who's it for?
People who've been wanting to read up on the latest papers in ML and other fields but just haven't been able to find the time/motivation.
Why:
We've been procrastinating too much on our readings, even though we have so much fun doing them. We know we're not alone in this and want to keep others accountable for learning more about what they're passionate about!
We've also met a ton of really fun friends by discussing what we care about!
Rules/guidelines on how to act:
Act like a host, include people in conversations, talk to people even if they're strangers, offer to explain what you know, and keep an open mind! come to read stuff and find super fun friends :)
Bring snacks if you're feeling kind!