We’re living in a time of fast change, with technology, society, and our environment all shifting rapidly. Some of this is exciting, some of it scary, and a good deal more is plain unpredictable. In times like these, art and culture are more essential than ever—for it is in the arts that we can reflect on where and what we are, and dream of where we are going next. AI, in particular, is changing how we create, distribute, and consume the arts, and forcing us to question what its core is. This type of questioning is useful, as it stops us becoming complacent and makes us alert to the world as it really is. In this talk, the speaker explores how, as an artist and maker of live performances, he works through these issues—and how what can be seen as a threat to established practices and professional careers may also be an opportunity and an inspiration. After all, we have been making art for tens of thousands of years. We won’t stop anytime soon. Dr. Bill Aitchison is an actor, theatre director, and interdisciplinary artist whose work has been presented in galleries, museums, theatres, and festivals across Europe, Asia, America, Australia, and the Middle East. He has worked in diverse contexts including British Live Art, New York downtown theatre, postdramatic theatre, conceptual dance, and Chinese performance art, to name but a few. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx