The AI Economy Is “Propped Up by a Ponzi Scheme,” Says Director of ‘The AI Doc’
“Fuck them. Utah just became 35% culturally less relevant, and good riddance to them. They don’t deserve it. Moving on, over and next.” Those were among the first words out of director Daniel Roher’s mouth as he sat down with his codirector, Charlie Tyrell, at this year’s Sundance Film Festival to discuss their film The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist. Roher, who won an Oscar for best documentary feature for 2022’s Navalny, is opinionated—not just about the festival moving from Park City to Boulder, but on a whole host of topics. But he views himself as an “apocaloptimist”—that’s “apocalypse” plus “optimist”—when it comes to artificial intelligence, meaning he doesn’t think it will destroy the world. As optimists go, he could be pretty biting as we chatted in a private room at Old Town Cellars on Park City’s Main Street. Focus Features is releasing The AI Doc in theaters on March 27. If you’re even slightly interested in what’s going on with AI, it’s required viewing: The film touches on all aspects of …
