These days, it's hard to find a person who doesn't use AI. Given its ubiquity, what is Ethicronics' stance on AI?

Recently, we attended the event 'AI and me: How AI is shaping people and professions', led by Clare Gaffney, Barbara McGillivray, and Ganesh Venkatesh at HEC In The UK. 

One conclusion the speakers reached was that AI is unable to successfully replicate human authenticity. Clare argued that human 'intuition' cannot be imitated, but she praised its utility as a 'sparring partner'. Similarly, Barbara argued that AI lacks the necessary 'lived experience' for genuine originality. 

I couldn't help but notice the philosophical underpinnings of this discussion. Let me explain.

In the 18th century, Kant argued that space and time are fundamental 'intuitions' (anschauung). AI does not inhabit the spatiotemporal world. Drawing from Kant, perhaps this is why AI is incapable of imitating human authenticity.

Simone De Beauvoir, in 'The Second Sex', coined the term 'lived experience' (erlebnis). This work was monumentally influential for second-wave feminism. Here, she emphasised the role of first-hand subjective experience in order to better comprehend the society in which we live. 

AI is fundamentally probabilistic. It generates text by predicting the likelihood of one word following another. Human beings don't work that way. We don't think by assigning probabilities to words. Rather, we harness past experiences. And so, drawing from De Beauvoir, perhaps it's because of erlebnis -- a sense of subjectivity -- that AI won't ever be able to replicate human authenticity. 

What do you think? Can AI be genuinely original? If yes, why? If not, why not? Email me at george@ethicronics.com.

It's been a busy year at Ethicronics. So, we decided to take a moment to reflect.

A university education is priceless. But what you don't get is hands-on, real-life industry experience. This is what we provided to twelve precocious young minds from the University of Cambridge, who worked with us for three months. 

They attended socials, visited embassies, and learned about what it's like to work in a flourishing start-up environment. Of course, their technical skills improved vastly. But most importantly, they transformed their minds, and grew as individuals.

Rohan Wadhawan, one of our interns -- and a young man who will indubitably go on to do great things -- said: "Over the summer, I worked with a talented group of software engineers, developing the company's core hardware assurance solution [...] It's also been very interesting learning about the inner workings of a fast-paced startup environment, and I'm super grateful for the opportunity to have worked here."

Our interns also partook in Hack@CHES2025, the world's leading hardware security hackathon in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Out of 47 teams, they placed an impressive 5th. Fittingly, they celebrated by enjoying the view from the iconic Infinity Pool overlooking the Petronas Towers. 

Yes, Ethicronics is a start-up that provides hardware assurance. But it's also so much more than that. We provide the springboard on which future leaders begin their careers. We are proud to have cultivated the potential of such talented individuals. To our interns, we are very proud of and grateful for all your hard work.

At Ethicronics, we're almost always busy with events. It's important to consolidate what we've learned, and to appreciate the gems of knowledge bequeathed to us by deep-tech experts. So where have we been and what have we gathered?

The first photonic quantum computer was (arguably) designed in Bristol in 2013 -- thank you to Martin Weides for clarifying this point. Recently, as part of SiliconCatalyst's third cohort of start-ups, we attended Chipstart's event in Bristol. Here is a (blurry) picture of Franck doing his presentation!

The city's legacy in deep-tech is palpable. Each CEO gave an elevator pitch. As I watched, I became increasingly gripped by a pervasive sense of excitement. This, it occurred to me in a moment of inspiration, is how the world goes round. Novel ideas, and the execution of those ideas, function as the engine of human advancement.

Also, as a (self-admitted) neophyte in deep-tech, I learned an important lesson. Of course, when gauging the potential of a start-up, the ideas themselves are most important. But the way in which these ideas are communicated should not, by any means, be underestimated. I was struck by the clarity with which the CEOs expressed their ideas. Similarly, at Ethicronics, we strive to 'translate', as it were, deep-tech terminology to those who want to get into the industry.