Sunghee Yun

Co-founder & CTO @ Erudio Bio, Inc., KFAS-Salzburg Global Leadership Initiative Fellow @ Salzburg Global Seminar, Adjunct Professor @ Sogang University, Advisory Professor @ DGIST

Abstract

The AI revolution continues to transform our world at an unprecedented pace. From the pioneering AlexNet breakthrough in 2012 to the revolutionary Transformer architecture in 2017, and the paradigm-shifting debut of ChatGPT in 2022, each milestone has expanded our understanding of what’s possible. Today, we find ourselves in an era defined by multimodal AI agents and their profound implications for society, compelling us to critically examine both the promise and challenges of an AI-powered future.

This seminar traces AI’s remarkable evolution, with particular focus on recent significant achievements and an honest assessment of whether current excitement constitutes genuine progress or merely hype. We’ll explore the emergence of multimodal AI agents and their far-reaching implications, from reshaping industries to fundamentally altering how society functions. Beyond technical capabilities, we’ll confront essential questions surrounding AI ethics, biases, consciousness, reasoning, and belief systems that increasingly demand our attention.

The discussion will then pivot to constructive approaches for empowering humanity in this AI-enriched future. Drawing on insights from the KFAS-Salzburg Global Leadership Initiative, I’ll present frameworks for reclaiming technology in service of humanity rather than allowing ourselves to be subjugated by it. We’ll explore practical strategies for harnessing AI’s transformative potential while mitigating its risks.

The seminar concludes with thought-provoking appendices examining serendipitous developments in AI history and AI’s growing impact in biotechnology. These supplementary materials invite deeper reflection on whether AI’s evolution follows inevitable patterns and how its application across domains continues to expand human capabilities while raising important ethical considerations.

Through this comprehensive exploration, participants will gain not only technical understanding but also philosophical perspectives essential for navigating the profound metamorphosis AI is bringing to global society.