IMAGE ABOVE: The sculptor Pygmalion falls in love with a statue he made, and Aphrodite brings the statue to life as the maiden Galateia…
By Nick Stamatakis
I was awestruck last night as I watched the fascinating interview by Natalie Morris of “Redacted” with George Zarkadakis (at the bottom of this post). And even more later, when I found out (here is his full biography) that he was born in Athens at about the same time as I was (the early 1960s) and was thoroughly educated in the “classics”, including learning ancient Greek – as we all did at the time.
In an era dominated by rapid technological advances, George Zarkadakis stands out not only as a scientist and AI expert but also as a thinker deeply rooted in Greece’s classical heritage. His unique approach to artificial intelligence reflects a lifelong synthesis of disciplines, from ancient Greek philosophy and myth to cybernetics and systems theory. For the Greek American community watching the evolution of AI with both curiosity and concern, Zarkadakis offers a compelling and human-centered perspective grounded in Hellenic thought.
Born and raised in Athens, Zarkadakis’s early fascination with the interplay between machines and humanity began with his studies in electrical engineering. It later culminated in a PhD in Artificial Intelligence and Engineering Systems. But unlike many technologists, his intellectual formation was deeply steeped in the humanities. A student of ancient Greek language and literature, he frequently draws on mythological frameworks to illuminate the present — and nowhere is this more evident than in his use of the myth of Pygmalion and Galateia to frame the modern AI conversation.
Zarkadakis emphasized how this myth encapsulates a perennial human desire: to animate the inanimate, to imbue our creations with life. “Pygmalion,” he explains, “falls in love with a statue — his idealized creation — and Aphrodite breathes life into it.” For Zarkadakis, this story is more than an allegory; it is an early expression of the human urge to build thinking machines in our own image. And, crucially, it is a cautionary tale about projection, control, and the risks of idealization.
PAINTING: One more painting of Pygmalion and Galateia by Paolo di Mattei…
Zarkadakis’ early work in cybernetics — the study of regulatory systems and feedback loops — further shaped his understanding of AI as not merely code or computation but as a social and philosophical phenomenon. His roles as a science writer, novelist, and AI architect (including work on the Future of Work and labor automation for organizations like the World Economic Forum) all reflect a rare interdisciplinary fluency. “AI isn’t just a technical problem,” he insists. “It’s a human problem. It’s about how we see ourselves.”
That humanistic lens is deeply informed by Greek intellectual tradition. Zarkadakis often references Socratic dialogues, Aristotelian logic, and even Homeric themes when exploring questions of consciousness, agency, and ethics in machine intelligence. His book In Our Own Image: Will Artificial Intelligence Save Us or Destroy Us? presents the development of AI as a philosophical journey as much as a technical one, echoing the dialectic spirit of Plato while questioning modern assumptions about mind and machine.
Zarkadakis offers a particularly resonant model: one that does not separate Hellenic heritage from innovation but uses it as a foundation for asking more profound questions about where we are headed. “Technology without ethics is dangerous,” he warns, “and ethics without stories is empty.” By reclaiming myth as a guide — especially myths like Pygmalion, which challenge the boundaries between creator and creation — Zarkadakis urges us to remain vigilant stewards of our tools, not their worshippers.
In a world increasingly defined by algorithms, George Zarkadakis invites us to remember our roots: not to romanticize the past, but to use its wisdom to shape a more human future.
July 6, 2025, n.stamatakis@aol.com www.helleniscope.com
