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AI is Not the Opposite of Nature
Why we need to talk about responsibility before intelligence.
Raphael Kim, PhD
October 19, 2025
Dear reader,
Next Friday, I’ll be speaking at the Next Nature Conference 2025 – Bio Design, part of Dutch Design Week at the iconic Evoluon in Eindhoven.
The conference gathers designers, scientists, and artists exploring how AI, living systems, and sustainable materials are shaping a regenerative future.
Preparing for my talk — “What Does Responsible AI Look Like in Biodesign?” — made me realise how often we still think of artificial intelligence as something synthetic, detached, or even opposed to life.
But perhaps AI is not the opposite of nature.
Perhaps it is one of its continuations.
Reframing the “Artificial”
Biology and computation are both learning systems. One evolves through enzymes and proteins, the other through data and code.
When we teach an algorithm to model a protein, it performs a kind of digital evolution: iterating, adapting, optimising, failing, trying again. It’s not so different from how nature explores the possible.
If we accept that, then the question shifts. It’s no longer should AI belong in biodesign?
It becomes how do we work with it responsibly?
Responsibility as a Material
In biodesign, responsibility is a material — as real as agar, cellulose, or mycelium.
Every model we train and every biological system we engineer carries assumptions about value, purpose, and ownership.
Working with AI and living systems side by side means confronting those assumptions early — before they calcify into practice.
To design responsibly, we have to think ecologically about our algorithms: who they serve, what they consume, and what kinds of futures they help us imagine.
Toward a More-Than-Human Collaboration
The most interesting question in this space is not what AI can do for biology, but what biology can teach us about AI — adaptability, empathy, circular logic.
Designing responsibly with AI might not be about controlling life, but learning from it.
And perhaps, the real intelligence to strive for is the one that cares.
I’ll share my slides, references, and a reflection piece after the conference next week, with Foundational Tier members getting access much earlier than that.
Until next time,
Raphael
Biodesign Academy
What Does Responsible AI Look Like in Biodesign?
Exploring the Continuum Between Nature and Intelligence
Introduction: When AI Meets Life Itself
Artificial intelligence is often described as something synthetic — detached, mechanical, and opposed to the organic world. Yet, when we look closer, AI and biology share a fundamental principle: both are systems that learn, adapt, and evolve.
As I prepare to speak at the Next Nature Conference 2025 – Bio Design during Dutch Design Week at the Evoluon in Eindhoven, one question continues to guide my thinking:
Perhaps AI is not the opposite of nature. Perhaps it is one of its continuations.
Reframing the “Artificial”
Biology and computation mirror one another as learning systems:
Biology evolves through enzymes, proteins, and mutations.
Computation evolves through data, models, and iterations.
When an algorithm learns to model a protein, it performs a kind of digital evolution — iterating, adapting, and optimizing just as life does.
This reframing shifts the central question:
It’s no longer “Should AI belong in biodesign?”
It becomes “How do we work with it responsibly?”
Responsibility as a Design Material
In biodesign, responsibility itself is a material — as tangible as agar, cellulose, or mycelium.
Every trained model or engineered organism embeds assumptions about value, purpose, and ownership. Working with AI and living systems side by side requires surfacing those assumptions before they calcify into default practice.
Responsible AI design means thinking ecologically about algorithms:
Who do they serve?
What do they consume?
What futures do they help us imagine?
Ethical design in this context isn’t a constraint; it’s a form of material intelligence.
Toward a More-Than-Human Collaboration
The deeper question is not what AI can do for biology, but what biology can teach AI:
Adaptability – evolution’s way of handling complexity.
Empathy – understanding relational systems, not isolated agents.
Circular logic – designing processes that regenerate rather than deplete.
Designing responsibly with AI may not mean controlling life but learning from it. The most advanced intelligence may not be the one that dominates — but the one that cares.
Summary: A Regenerative Vision for AI and Biodesign
Concept | Description | Implication for Biodesign |
|---|---|---|
AI as Continuation of Nature | AI systems evolve similarly to biological systems | Integrate computational and living processes ethically |
Responsibility as Material | Ethical awareness is intrinsic to the design process | Treat values and impacts as tangible design inputs |
More-Than-Human Collaboration | Biology and AI co-learn | Move toward regenerative, care-centered innovation |
Key Takeaways
AI and biology share learning-based logics — both evolve through feedback and adaptation.
Responsibility should be treated as a core material in biodesign, shaping every stage of AI development.
Ethical AI design in biodesign means creating systems that regenerate, not just automate.
True intelligence may emerge through empathy, care, and ecological understanding.
FAQs About Responsible AI in Biodesign
Q1. What does “responsible AI” mean in the context of biodesign?
It refers to designing AI systems that consider ecological, ethical, and social impacts — ensuring that computational processes align with the principles of living systems.
Q2. How can designers demonstrate responsibility as a material?
By embedding ethical reflection and transparency in the design workflow — from dataset selection to lifecycle evaluation of biotechnologies.
Q3. Why is reframing “artificial” important?
Because the term implies separation from life, while in reality, both AI and biology are part of a continuum of adaptive systems.
Q4. What is “more-than-human” collaboration?
It’s the practice of designing with awareness of nonhuman systems — understanding that intelligence extends beyond the human to the biological and ecological.
Conclusion: Designing the Intelligence That Cares
As we design the next generation of biological and computational systems, our challenge is not just to make them powerful, but responsible.
The future of AI in biodesign may depend less on control — and more on care, adaptability, and ecological intelligence.
Author: Raphael
Speaking at the Next Nature Conference 2025 – Bio Design, Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven
Tags: Responsible AI, Biodesign, Bioinformatics, Ethical Design, Sustainability, Regenerative Futures