Imagine predicting the future of technology decades before it actually arrives. That’s exactly what Steve Jobs did in 1983! Even though chatbots powered by generative AI are the latest buzz, Jobs was already dreaming about this kind of tech back then.
A recent digital exhibit from the Steve Jobs Archive has brought to light a fascinating presentation Jobs gave at the International Design Conference in Aspen. During this talk, Jobs described a new technology that could think and respond to questions like a human. To him, this technology was a logical next step from books.
Jobs reflected on his school days, recalling how books, though incredible, were limited because readers couldn’t interact with them. He mentioned how reading Plato or Aristotle was a one-way street; you could only read what was written without asking questions.
In his forward-looking vision, Jobs imagined a future where machines could capture and embody the essence of great thinkers. He speculated that if such a machine could preserve the knowledge of a philosopher like Aristotle, it might be possible to ask it questions long after the philosopher’s death. “When the next Aristotle comes around,” Jobs said, “maybe if he carries around one of these machines with him his whole life and types in all this stuff, then maybe someday after the person is dead and gone, we can ask this machine, ‘Hey, what would Aristotle have said? What about this?’”
Fast forward more than 40 years, and Jobs’ vision is increasingly becoming a reality. AI companies are developing advanced chatbots like ChatGPT, which are trained on extensive data from books, articles, and other sources. These chatbots are designed to respond to user questions and even simulate the perspectives of historical figures. While they are still a work in progress—sometimes providing accurate answers and other times falling short—they represent a new way of interacting with knowledge and history.
