I read an article in The New York Times recently about artificial general intelligence (AGI) and how it’s poised to replace most cognitive human tasks in the next few years. That’s… unsettling. On one hand, it’s terrifying to think about a world where thinking, problem-solving, and creativity are outsourced to machines. On the other hand, it probably means I still have job security, since AGI doesn’t seem like it’ll be hitting a workout anytime soon.
While AGI represents disembodied, digital cognition, its opposite isn’t just a lack of intelligence. It’s something older, deeper, and more essential: Biological Interconnected Experience (BIE)—the intelligence that comes from being alive, from existing in a body, from feeling, sensing, and moving through the world with others.
AGI can process data at an unfathomable speed, but it can’t walk barefoot on wet grass. It can generate a poem, but it can’t feel the heartbreak that inspired it. It can solve equations, but it will never know the quiet satisfaction of a long hike with a friend, the rhythm of breath during a hard sprint, or the electric energy of a crowded stadium singing in unison.
So if AGI really does take over cognitive tasks, what do we do with the time it frees up? History tells us we’ll probably just fill it with more work—but what if we didn’t? What if, instead, we leaned further into the things that AGI can never replace: movement, connection, and our place in the natural world?
The Keynesian Fallacy: More Efficiency, Less Work… Right?
John Maynard Keynes, the famous economist, made a prediction in 1930 that as technology improved, humans would work less. He speculated that by the 21st century, people would only work 15 hours a week because technological advancements would take care of most labor, freeing us up for leisure, creativity, and personal growth (Keynes, Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren, 1930).
Spoiler alert: That didn’t happen.
Instead of working less, we just work differently—and often more. The rise of efficiency didn’t lead to universal leisure; it led to an expectation of constant productivity. Email, smartphones, remote work—these were all supposed to make life easier, but they just blurred the line between “on” and “off.” Now, with AGI on the horizon, we have another chance to get this right—but history suggests we could just as easily screw it up again.
What If We Used This Time to Actually Live?
Let’s say AGI really does take over most cognitive tasks. It writes reports, codes software, diagnoses diseases, and answers emails faster than any human could. What do we do with the extra time?
My hope is that we replace it with more connection and physical expression. Instead of just filling the void with more productivity hacks, we could actually reclaim our bodies, our relationships, and our experience of the physical world.
1. Going on Long Walks With Friends
One of the simplest but most meaningful things we can do is just… walk and talk. Not because it burns calories or checks off some step goal, but because it’s one of the oldest forms of human connection. Philosophers have done it for centuries—Nietzsche, Thoreau, even Steve Jobs swore by the power of a good walk to spark ideas and deep conversations (Solnit, Wanderlust: A History of Walking, 2000).
2. Playing a Sport We Love—Even Badly
We don’t have to be pros. We don’t even have to be good. But playing a sport, moving our bodies, competing for fun—those are things AGI can’t replicate. There’s a kind of joy in the doing, in feeling your heart race, your muscles work, and your mind stay present in the game. Whether it’s pickup soccer, rec league softball, or just shooting hoops in the driveway, sports ground us in the moment in a way screens never will.
3. Spending More Time in Nature
Technology has pulled us further indoors, further into digital spaces, and further from the real, tangible world. If AGI is going to take over the desk work, let’s take back the forests, the mountains, the oceans. Research overwhelmingly shows that time in nature reduces stress, improves cognitive function, and even lowers blood pressure (Bratman et al., Nature and Mental Health, 2019). More importantly, it reminds us that we are part of something bigger than the internet.
AGI Can’t Replace This
Machines can think for us. They can process, predict, and optimize. But they can’t feel the sun on their skin, run through a field, dive into the ocean, or high-five a friend after a hard-fought game. They can’t experience the thrill of movement, the satisfaction of a deep conversation, or the stillness of a forest.
So if AGI really does take over—let’s not just invent new ways to work ourselves to death. Let’s use it as a tool to get back to the things that make us human.
We won’t get many more chances to make this choice.
