A Dire Warning From The 'Father of Virtual Reality'

The Takeaway | Nov 21, 2017

Click on the 'Listen' button above to hear this segment. 

You might think that the so-called "father of virtual reality" would be big on escaping the real world. Turns out, not so much.

"It's not about escapism at all," says Jaron Lanier, the computer scientist who coined the term virtual reality. He’s spent his career developing it and tracing its potential, and he has a new memoir out today, called “Dawn of the New Everything: Encounters with Reality and Virtual Reality." 

“If we don't get our act together as a society, virtual reality could be so manipulative and so dark it could be the end of us, I just have to be clear about that," he tells The Takeaway.

Lanier joins the program to discuss his new book, and the future of virtual reality. 

This segment is hosted by Todd Zwillich

WNYC is funded by sponsors and member donations

Top Stories

9/11 25 Years Later: Remembering the Ordinary Americans Who Died on 9/11

New Jersey columnist Mike Kelly, tells the stories of ordinary Americans, who lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks.
The Brian Lehrer Show |

2026 Fall Schedule Change

WNYC followed up with people whose voices we captured in the aftermath of the September 11th attack to hear their reflections.
WNYC |

Colin Kaepernick, Ten Years After Taking a Knee

In his new memoir, “The Perilous Fight,” the former N.F.L. star recounts the backlash he faced from the league.
The New Yorker Radio Hour |

A Documentary Spotlights the Oldest People in the World

All Of It with Alison Stewart |
YOU ARE ONLINE