EPISODE · Aug 8, 2026 · 1H 15M
Ep. 525 Gene Callahan Asks: If LLMs Are Thinking, What Are They Thinking About?
from Bob Murphy Show
Frequent guest Gene Callahan returns to present a talk he's been giving in academic circles, which relies on standard computer science to argue that LLMs can't possibly be thinking "about" the external world in the same way humans do. Economist and philosopher Kevin Vallier joins the discussion.Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest:The YouTube version of this episode.Gene Callahan on the ghost in the AI machine.Callahan's homepage. Vallier's homepage.Help support the Bob Murphy Show.
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Frequent guest Gene Callahan returns to present a talk he's been giving in academic circles, which relies on standard computer science to argue that LLMs can't possibly be thinking "about" the external world in the same way humans do. Economist and philosopher Kevin Vallier joins the discussion.
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Ep. 525 Gene Callahan Asks: If LLMs Are Thinking, What Are They Thinking About?
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