‘The AI Doc’: A Thoughtful Look at How Artificial Intelligence Shapes Our Future

Fox News’ Joseph A. Wulfsohn reviews ‘The AI Doc: or How I Became an Apocaloptimist,’ a new Focus Features documentary directed by Daniel Roher and Charlie Tyrell. The film opens with a prophetic quote from Arthur C. Clarke about computers one day outthinking their creators. It follows Roher, an Oscar-winning filmmaker expecting a child, as he explores the evolution and implications of artificial intelligence in modern society. Structured into three sections, the documentary first presents voices of alarmists who foresee AI as a global threat, then optimists who champion its potential, and finally the perspectives of leading figures in the tech industry, including Sam Altman (OpenAI), Dario Amodei (Anthropic), and Demis Hassabis (Google DeepMind). Notably absent are interviews with Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, who declined to participate. Experts like Yuval Noah Harari, Aza Raskin, and Tristan Harris provide nuanced insights into the dual nature of AI innovation and risk. The documentary also addresses issues like deepfakes, data centers, and the race for artificial general intelligence. Roher’s candid reflection on his own anxieties about AI, combined with artistic touches such as Benjamin Fieschi-Rose’s stop-motion animation, creates an engaging and accessible exploration of technology’s impact on humanity. Wulfsohn concludes that the film isn’t meant to answer every question about AI but to capture our collective uncertainty—earning a recommendation to stream it later for its timely examination of a fast-changing world.