You've Been Replaced
Now what? June 2025 Newsletter
You’ve Been Replaced (Now what?)
What does it mean to be human in an age of intelligent machines? One moonlit night in Austin, fifteen people boarded a black van to find out.
A first-year film student, hired to be our van driver for the evening, greeted these guests as they climbed aboard the unmarked van. The van left for a secret destination in East Austin, where they were destined to spend the evening as our participants in an experience my work partner and I designed.
As students in an experience design course, Stefy and I were testing some of the methods and concepts we were learning and had spent months assembling all the ingredients for this evening. By the end of the evening, we weren't even sure what happened. Here’s why.
We’ve realized a great experience doesn't aim to teach - it invites. A good experience should invite you to think about your world without having to direct you toward any specific conclusion. Even in the same room, no two people have the same experience. This experience design course has really been challenging for those of us who have designed courses, workshops, or facilitated events.
