What Would They Think?

Imagine peering into the minds of history's giants, not through dusty archives in some library’s basement, but through the lens of cutting-edge AI. On your smartphone.

A few years ago, a YouGov poll revealed how Americans perceive their past presidents, offering a fascinating glimpse into shifting national sentiment. But what if we could go further? What if we could hear directly from these historical figures about the present day?

This booklet explores that very question. Through interactions with advanced AI chatbots, I've attempted to compile imagined digital echoes of figures like Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Jackson, Ulysses S. Grant, Gerald Ford, John F. Kennedy and many more former US Presidents. Essentially, I've asked 10 AIs what these figures would make of Donald Trump, his presidency, and his policies?

Of course this is speculation and conjecture. However, the concept of 'AI Clones', while still emerging, is rapidly transforming how people interact with information. And AI models, trained on vast datasets of historical texts, speeches, and writings, offer a unique, if not theoretical, window into the past.