The God We Made: The Threat and Promise of Artificial Intelligence; Quarterly Essay 102

Quarterly Essay #102

by Anna Goldsworthy

Humanity in the age of AI
AI may be our most persuasive God yet.


At the same time, it forces a confrontation with what it means to be bodies, fragility, memory. It raises questions about human connection, leisure and learning. And it brings new existential and ethical risks.


In this dazzling essay, Anna Goldsworthy explores the implications of AI for art, culture and the self.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Technology

121 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 1, 2026

About the author

Anna Goldsworthy is an Australian classical pianist and writer. In October 2009 her memoir Piano Lessons was released in Australia by publisher Black Inc. In November 2010 it will be published in the US by St Martin's Press (Macmillian). From 2010 she will be Artistic Director of the Port Fairy Spring Music Festival. Anna is also a Board Member of the Australian Book Review, Artist-in-Residence at Janet Clarke Hall at the University of Melbourne, and a founding member of the Seraphim Trio.

Reviews

[Jemma Tan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was excellent. i think that i’ve always approached the rise of AI with a bit of a petulant attitude, prone to a recurring internal lament of “why does my generation have to deal with this”, and at the beginning of the whole generative AI explosion a stubborn refusal to touch it (which has since evaporated). this essay shifted me into the acceptance stage, namely because i’ve naively forgotten that generative AI is but the first step in the AI renaissance. things like artificial general intelligence could genuinely have the potential to almost exactly mirror the human consciousness & encode the flaws and idiosyncrasies that make us unique. what really makes us human if we can create beings with independent thought and desires? SCARY

also reminded me of one of my favourite long-form pieces of journalism that i’ve revisited many times throughout my language learning journey: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018... (Behemoth, bully, thief: how the English language is taking over the planet). as english subsumes all global languages and AI mutates, expands and feeds off all knowledge, do we just edge closer to a more uniform, bland version of society.

[Ash · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is very scary. Beautifully written, easily the best Quarterly Essay for some time. We probably thought we’d die from some form of climate disaster. Now I think I’ll die at the hands (robot hands) of AI. Evening everyone!

[Dulcie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was thiscwtitten by Ai? Possibly the most infantile QE in the past 10 years

[Tess Coventry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently written

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

As AI increasingly intertwines itself with us and becomes entrenched into every facet of our daily lives, Anna Goldsworthy pauses to reflect on what this means for us as humans.

This essay is written beautifully, in a style that feels so personal and eloquent but above all is so so interesting. I couldn't put this down. Not even my addiction to doom-scrolling could stop me. An excellent and important essay. Couldn't fault it.

[Luke Negri · Rating 2 out of 5]

This essay comes across as naive and, as another reviewer has said ‘infantile’. It feels like it was written by Professor Taylor from The Simpsons - a snobby, know-it-all type.

The author provides relatively little on the relation of AI to things she is expert in, and instead parrots the views of tech bros. There are frequent references to AI being ‘inevitable’, which I think reinforces the author’s unjustified reverence for tech bros.

The essay contains fragmented swaths of text which consist of big words to cover superficial thoughts. In fact, it resembles Redditors who think they are deep and profound (subreddits are even referenced throughout this essay). Parts of the essay feel tacked on to reach the word count without providing any additional insight. It overall lacks any sort of common sense, with the author instead so strangely hypnotised by a version of AI lauded by tech bros that does not and will never exist.

This is overall a poor Quarterly Essay. This is also after a bang-average QE102…. Lock in!

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I urge anyone who is feeling a similar pang of existential dread with the rise of AI to read this essay.

Being creative nonfiction, it’s very approachable. Goldsworthy weaves Academia and anecdotes seamlessly - the stories of her children were particularly captivating.

The author tore open the big questions - what happens to humanity, art, labour, university, love and knowledge in the face of AI.

While her perspective is clear she spends time unpacking the pro-ai talking points which even got me considering the other side.

This conversation fascinates me and I thought the essay grappled with some of the stickier parts.

Well worth the read.

[Warrren Gardiner]

I started thinking this essay was teaching me something special about the creative process but ended up thinking I didn't know much more about the policy challenges of AI. Disappointing.

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anna Goldsworthy is not a computer scientist: if anything, she couldn't be further from computer science, as she is a concert pianist and chamber musician, as well as working in academia. If you are an AI user who only dabbles around with a bit of Gemini and Claude, that works to your advantage because she explains things in a very clear, non-technical way. Her concern is not with the specifications and scripts of AI, but instead with the question of what AI does to us as humans- and that, I think, is the more interesting question.

She ranges over a number of issues that have arisen in relation to AI: the predictions of annihilation; the number of computer scientists who have 'walked' from the big companies once they realize the power of what they have created; the obsolescence of whole swathes of work and how to make meaning in its absence; the effect of AI-speak on our own writing style, and the cheapness of AI replicating a writer's style; the phenomenon of people 'befriending' their chatbot; the sycophancy of chatbots and situations where chatbots have encouraged people into harm.

Essentially, she comes down to the body - even while raising the spectre of embodied AI- and the limitations that it imposes upon us, and the meaning it gives us. I think that this is where I land too, especially as I grow older and recognize the effect of time and experience on something so resilient and yet transient.

For my complete review please visit: https://residentjudge.com/2026/08/16/...

[Jenny Esots · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review courtesy of chatGPT - Anna Goldsworthy argues that artificial intelligence is not merely another technology but a profound shift forcing humanity to reconsider identity, creativity and purpose. While AI offers remarkable possibilities, it also poses ethical, social and existential risks. Ultimately, she contends our embodied, relational humanity remains uniquely valuable and worth protecting.
My comments:
Anna incorporates responses from her own family on the use and abuse of AI.
The benefits are that huge amounts of 'sifting of info can occur very quickly via AI.
The issues being humans can rely on info that may be false.
The dystopian outlook is the AI will take over us all!!
Anna Goldsworthy is a fine wordsmith and meticulously looks at the arguments on the limitations of AI, while acknowledging that AI is here to stay.
Worth rereading and sharing on.

[Jack Corkill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great descriptions through her thoughts and her children’s optimism about the takeover of AI with its benefits and downsides.

I have had similar thoughts about removing technology such as google maps to help my mind stay agile. I agree AI will erode that ability which is not a good thing.

Removing some arduous, irrelevant tasks could arguably be a good thing and help us to use our minds more effectively and wisely to solve problems. But I worry there is a chance by removing the mundane decisions it will not help to solve those difficult problems.

So many interesting small examples of AIs impact in positive, negative, and yet to be understood ways.

[Rhys Parry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first exposure to Anna Goldsworthy and it is phenomenally good. Wonderful collection of thoughts and vignettes (for want of a better word) of AI and its tendrils into our lives, into creativity into education and platonic and romantic relationships.

Shout out to the alphabet soup of external characters that provide terrific insight. There is a wonderful tension between the voices of R O Z and the gentle maternal pushback that advocates (rightfully) for reality and humanity at every turn.

[Lyndon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent breakdown of where Australia currently sits in relation to Artificial Intelligence, and how our response to it will shape who we become next. At times I felt that Goldsworthy was so invested in creating a human voice for her work that it became a bit mired in its own expression, but nevertheless she has crafted a very important essay on the great question of our time: how might we best live in the world we have just created?

[Saschenka · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was beautifully written and exploratory - felt like a very different style of QE. I'm sort of sick of reading about policy here so it was lovely to engage with a thoughtful spiritual and philosophical engagement. Perhaps not enough about the environmental impacts, particularly as we see an influx in data centre developments in suburbia. I didn't come out with any particularly new insights but enjoyed the journey.

[Dan Santelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A refreshing take on the inevitability of AI weaving into our houses, schools and workplaces, and whether pioneers in Silicon Valley will prioritise safety or profits through engagement above all else.

[Carol Nichols · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely fascinating! Could not out it down.

And the title? Perfection.

In this essay Goldsworthy combines her incredible intellect with her personal experience and parses it through the lens of her kids. It’s a compelling read.

[Philip Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding. Comprehensive. Accessible.

[Adrian K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best book I have read on AI - dare I say, better than Pope Leo's.