Contemplative AI: Google’s “Bard” Answers My Questions About Mysticism, Prayer, and Interspirituality

So I got invited to be a beta-tester for Google’s new AI assistant called Bard. Yesterday I received an email from Google that said, in part:

Meet Bard, an early experiment by Google
Because you’re a Google One member, we’d like to offer you the opportunity to be among the first to sign up for the new Bard experience and provide feedback. Think of Bard as your creative and helpful collaborator, here to bring your ideas to life using generative AI…
You might ask Bard to outline a blog post about summer mocktail recipes, draft a packing list for a weekend fishing and camping trip, or help you understand if lightning can strike the same place twice.
We can’t wait to hear how people start using Bard, but we also know that large language models will not always get it right. Input from a wide range of experts and users will help Bard improve.

It sounded like fun, so I signed up, and today I got an email that said “It’s your turn to try Bard.” So I did. I clicked through to Bard’s home page, agreed to the terms of service (noting tidbits like a warning not to use Bard for legal, medical or therapeutic advice), and then I was brought to a simple page where I was invited to enter a prompt, a question to pose so that Bard could show itself off.

I typed the following request in:

Help me to write a blog post about Buddhist-Christian interspiritual practice.

And here’s what Bard came up with… almost instantaneously:

Buddhist-Christian interspiritual practice is the practice of combining elements of both Buddhism and Christianity in one’s spiritual life. This can be done in a variety of ways, such as incorporating Buddhist meditation practices into one’s Christian prayer life, or studying Christian texts alongside Buddhist scriptures.

There are many reasons why someone might choose to pursue interspiritual practice. Some people find that both Buddhism and Christianity offer valuable insights into the human condition and the nature of reality. Others may be drawn to the complementary nature of the two traditions, which can provide a more holistic approach to…