Q3 - AI in Data, Behavior, and Human Systems with Syon Bhanot, PhD

Paths of Curiosity in an AI WorldEvery cafeteria, every app, and every website you use today was designed to push you towards a decision before you even knew you were making one.And the people who built it? They're not thinking about you.In this episode, we kick off our AI and Human Decision-Making: Choices, Bias, and Behavior miniseries with Dr. Syon Bhanot, Associate Professor of Economics at Swarthmore College and Senior Researcher at MIT's Applied Cooperation Team, whose field experiments with governments, cities, and international organizations — including the World Bank and the U.S. Federal Government — have changed how millions of people save, conserve, and make decisions about their own lives. He is the recipient of the 2024 Exeter Prize for his research on attention and decision-making.Together, we explore:How a text message and a wristband made people two-thirds more likely to finish tuberculosis treatment in Kenya — and what that tells us about why we fail to do even the things that matter mostWhat TikTok and Instagram actually know about your psychology — and why calling you a "user" is no accidentWhy telling people they're losing a water conservation competition caused them to use more water, not lessThe moment money ruins everything: why adding $11 to helping a friend move makes you less likely to show upWhy the happiest people aren't optimizers — and what that means for every major decision you're about to makeWhat AI nudging looks like when the system doing the nudging answers to an advertiser, not to youDr. Bhanot also shares his own winding path from a year at a refugee camp in Kenya to stumbling into microeconomics in grad school to running experiments that shape federal policy — and why the best metaphor for a career is surfing, not planning.This conversation will change how you think about every choice you make — and every choice that's already being made for you.Because in a world where algorithms, platforms, and institutions are all nudging you somewhere, the question isn't just whether you're being influenced. It's whether anyone nudging you actually has your interests in mind.Paths of Curiosity in an AI World Exploring tomorrow’s careers through the lens of AI Follow us: @pathsofcuriosityWebsite: https://pathsofcuriosity.com/Youtube: youtube.com/@PathsofCuriosityX: https://x.com/PathsCuriosityLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paths-of-curiosity-in-an-ai-world-2117803aa/