24: Linus Lee - Engineering for Aliveness
Linus Lee (Website, X) is a builder, engineer, and writer who explores how software can amplify our abilities, humanity, and agency. He builds, researches, and advises on AI at Thrive Capital, a venture capital firm, and continues to write and hack on personal projects.Previously, Linus held research or engineering roles at Notion, Betaworks, Replit, and others, and has built over 100 personal projects on the side--including his own programming language and most of the tools he uses day to day. Most of his work, writing, and projects revolve around language, knowledge work, thinking tools, machine intelligence, and latent space for creativity.We begin with how technology can concentrate or distribute power and amplify our diminish our agency. Then he breaks down his framework around instrumental and engaged interfaces, why representation is so critical in tools, and talks through what 'tools for thought' actually means. We also discuss the state of LLM tools and how they can become more robust, as well as how latent space could be codified to help us understand more qualitative domains. This bleeds into his approach to and work at Thrive, which we discuss in detail.Linus is attuned to the ways technology can make us more or less human, and that's reflected throughout. Technology is not determined: the future we imagine and create is entirely up to us. Will we optimize ourselves into something non-human, or dream our way into something beautiful?Views expressed here are the interviewee's and not intended as investment advice.Full transcript and all links are available at https://dialectic.fm/linus-leeTimestamps:(2:23): Values and Technology as an Amplifier for Agency(9:57): Instrumental vs. Engaged Interfaces and Tools(20:05): Representations, Abstraction, and Exposing Complexity(33:23): Dreaming of Thinking Tools, Especially Beyond Text(48:06): LLMs, Mechanical Thinking, and Going Beyond in How We Understand(57:42): Embeddings of People(1:01:16): Applying Rigor and an Engineering Approach to Working with LLMs(1:08:26): Collaborating with AI: Having Agents Work for You vs. Accelerating Your Craft(1:11:10): Using LLMs to Explore Latent Space(1:14:58): Working at Thrive: building internal tools and taking software seriously at a VC firm(1:28:09): What Great Engineering in an Organization Looks Like(1:33:50): Humanity, Aliveness, and Technology(1:39:41): Dreams, Aesthetics, Imagery, and Intentionally Guiding Technology(1:46:09): Lost to WonderReferencesWhat are conference talks about? - LinusInstrumental interfaces, engaged interfaces - LinusWhat makes a good human interface? - LinusDialectic Ep. 21: Geoffrey Litt - Software You Can ShapeLinus Lee on Representations for MIT Media Lab LectureOn Exactitude in Science - Jorge Luis BorgesC. Thi NguyenThe Three-Body Problem - Liu CixinThe British LibrarySpatial Interfaces - John PalmerPrism: mapping interpretable concepts and features in a latent space of language - LinusSynthesizer for thought - LinusLiquid Art - Kate ComptonThoughts on Loom - LinusLinus on FloraStory of Your Life - Ted ChiangArrival (2016)Linus's bio, culinary editionGoodfire AINotion, AI, and Me - LinusDan ShipperEveryPhilip WadlerCreate things that come alive - LinusA Rant about "Technology" - Ursula Le GuinRadio City - LinusLinus tweet on aestheticsWonder engines - LinusSeeing Is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees - Lawrence Weschlerlost to wonderDialectic with Jackson Dahl is available on all podcast platforms.Join the telegram channel for DialecticFollow Dialectic on TwitterFollow Dialectic on InstagramSubscribe to Dialectic on YouTube
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