Or are we just desperate for it to care
In this powerful and wide-ranging conversation with Greg Suart, Dr. Lollie Mancey invites us to rethink what it means to be human, to lead, and to stay awake in an age defined by accelerating technological change. An anthropologist, futurist and AI ethicist, she lays out why we’re living through an unprecedented moment: multiple global systems; culture, identity, technology, politics and truth, are shifting all at once, faster than our inherited coping mechanisms can adapt. No wonder we feel overwhelmed.
But for Lollie, this is not a crisis, it’s a cognitive revolution. AI isn’t becoming conscious, she reminds us; we are being asked to become more conscious. These new tools mirror our biases, our loneliness, our assumptions – and reveal more about us than about machines. They can scale brilliance or harm, depending entirely on the wisdom, awareness and courage of the humans using them.
Lollie challenges leaders to abandon fear-based, scarcity-driven thinking and redesign systems for abundance, collaboration, inclusion and psychological safety. She argues that the greatest risks are not rogue technologies but unquestioned worldviews, declining critical thinking, and leaders outsourcing their humanity to machines.
Yet her vision is profoundly hopeful: a future where AI augments human potential, where guardrails support innovation, where organizations become places of trust and creativity, and where connectedness, purpose and service define success. Above all, she champions a deeply human reminder: technology can be smart — but only conscious, courageous, generous humans can make the future wise.
For more information about Dr Lollie Mancey visit:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/drlollie/
https://drlollie.ie/