What Makes Us Human: The Search for Meaning in the Age of AI
With so much happening around AI, I can’t help but feel excited about the changes and opportunities ahead. At the same time, I notice a lot of concern — much of it understandable — about AI replacing humans. This made me reflect on what is uniquely human and what differentiates us from machines. I found myself recalling people I’ve met, books I’ve read, and vivid memories that still feel relevant today.
INTELLIGENCE vs. WISDOM
I’ve come to think that intelligence alone is not enough — it never was. Back in Bucharest, I used to attend Eugène Ionesco’s plays. He was a Romanian-born French playwright and one of the pioneers of the Theatre of the Absurd. I also read some of his essays and still remember parts of his ideas, though not his exact words. He believed that intelligent people can be the most susceptible to ideologies, including the Nazi one he witnessed during World War II, because they can rationalize and justify almost anything. The most disturbing actions often begin with rational explanations and eventually become ordinary — we grow used to them.
He captured this brilliantly in Rhinoceros, where people end up accepting previously unthinkable behaviors. I often wondered how so many intelligent people could end up on the wrong side of history — and of humanity. Over time, I realized that intelligence, whether human or artificial, can be powerful yet limited. It can fail to show us the full, long-term implications of our choices — especially ethical or moral ones. We need something else to guide us.
I remember a talk from science hystorian Omar Nasim at Zurich Art Weekend in the summer of 2023. He said that ancient civilizations distinguished between intelligence and wisdom — and that wisdom was considered the higher form. I agree with this view. We need not just intelligence but wisdom to guide us through life.
THE HUMAN NEED FOR MEANING
But even wisdom alone doesn’t capture the full picture of what it means to be human. There’s also our search for meaning. We long to give meaning not only to our daily activities but to life itself. I often reflect on the meaning of my own life, not as a detached philosophical question but as a painful existential necessity. Sometimes, I worry that I’ve wasted the precious time I was given in this world.
I remember a colleague from my days in community pharmacy. She was also a mother and once told me that children give life meaning — that without them, life would feel empty. I fully understand that perspective. Dedicating your life to raising children can be deeply meaningful and fulfilling, and many can relate to that. But I’m also convinced there are many other ways to find meaning in life.
This search for meaning — this need to feel that what we do matters — is what separates us from machines. It’s something we must each discover for ourselves, because without it, nothing else truly matters.
Featured image: Self-portrait series by the author, Merano, September 2025.
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