Is AI the New Printing Press? [AI 3/4]

18Forty Podcast

18Forty

Judaism, Religion & Spirituality

4.7 • 704 Ratings

🗓️ 11 November 2025

⏱️ 95 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This series is sponsored by American Security Foundation.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast—recorded at the 18Forty X ASFoundation AI Summit—we speak with Moshe Koppel, Malka Simkovich, and Tikvah Wiener about what the AI revolution will mean for the Jewish community.

In this episode we discuss:

How is AI going to change the dynamics, cadence, and rhythm of Jewish life?
Should we panic about AI replacing the role of creative human work?
What can Jewish and world history teach us about this moment?

Tune in to hear a conversation about what AI can teach us about our own needs, especially the need for Shabbos.

Interview begins at 14:26.

Dr. Moshe Koppel is a computer scientist, Talmud scholar, and political activist. Moshe is a professor of computer science at Bar-Ilan University, and a prolific author of academic articles and books on Jewish thought, computer science, economics, political science, and other disciplines. He is the founding director of Kohelet, a conservative-libertarian think tank in Israel, and he advises members of the Knesset on legislative matters.

Dr. Malka Simkovich is the director and editor-in-chief of the Jewish Publication Society and previously served as the Crown-Ryan Chair of Jewish Studies and Director of the Catholic-Jewish Studies program at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. She earned a doctoral degree in Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism from Brandeis University and a Master’s degree in Hebrew Bible from Harvard University.

Tikvah Wiener is Founder and Co-Director of The Idea Institute, which, since 2014, has trained close to 2000 educators in project-based learning and innovative pedagogies. From 2018-2023, she was also Head of School of The Idea School, a Jewish, project-based learning high school in Tenafly, NJ.

References:

“Lazy Sunday - SNL Digital Short”

Mechkarim Be-sifrut Ha-teshuvot by Yitzchak Ze'ev Kahane

"In the Shadow of the Emperor: The Hatam Sofer’s Copyright Rulings" by David Nimmer

Meta-Halakhah: Logic, Intuition, and the Unfolding of Jewish Law by Moshe Koppel

Judaism Straight Up by Moshe Koppel

“Yiddishkeit Without Ideology: A Letter To My Son” by Moshe Koppel

@ShabbosReads

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Are you looking for more 1840 in your life? A lot of people may say no to that. But if you're one of the people who are saying yes, if you want more 1840 in your life, then check out our new, newly designed, newly organized website at 1840.org. That's 1-8-F-O-R-T-Y.org. It's the place for you. We have completely overhauled our entire website. Welcome to your new address for exploring
0:22.9	today's biggest Jewish questions, dive into old topics, discover the latest essays on culture,
0:28.2	faith, identity, and listen to all of our podcasts, old and new. Visit 1840.org, that's
0:33.9	1-8-F-O-R-T-Y.org for more. Happy searching and good luck, not getting lost in the troves of incredible Jewish content.
1:09.6	Hi, friends. Hi friends and welcome to the 1840 podcast where each month we explore a different topic balancing modern sensibilities with traditional sensitivities to give you new approaches to timeless Jewish ideas.
1:12.3	I'm your host, David Bischofkin and this month month we're continuing our exploration of AI. Artificial Intelligence. Thank you so much to our partners and
1:19.4	sponsors. In this entire series, ASF, the American Securities Fund. We're so grateful for all of their
1:26.8	incredible work and leadership on this issue.
1:30.0	This podcast is part of a larger exploration of those big, juicy, Jewish ideas. So be sure to
1:36.0	check out 1840.org. That's 1-8-F-O-R-T-Y.org, where you can also find videos, articles,
1:41.9	recommended readings, and weekly emails.
1:45.0	If I think carefully enough, I can remember quite a bit of firsts.
1:50.3	Like the first time I did X, Y, or Z, or saw a new technology in my lifetime.
1:56.4	Like, what were the big, big technologies that came out in my lifetime?
2:00.4	So I think the first, first that I remember was when we got an Apple computer, the original Apple.
2:06.9	That's the 128K, the Macintosh.
2:10.5	I remember the room that it was in.
2:11.8	I remember playing bristles when it came out.
2:14.3	I remember the transition from tapes to CDs.
2:17.1	I remember the first time my father
2:18.7	got a car phone. He was a doctor. He needed a car phone. I remember when car phones came out. I remember
2:25.0	the first time that I saw a laser printer. For some reason, that was a big deal to me. The first time
	...

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