The Institute for Culture and Thought (CIP) has launched the 2025–2026 academic year with the seminar “Can we still engage with culture in the age of AI?”, an event open to the entire university community, aimed at reflecting on the cultural and intellectual challenges of our time.

The event featured contributions from philosophers Dr Higinio Marín and Dr Gregorio Luri, and was moderated by Dr Montserrat Nebrera, lecturer at the Faculty of Law. These seminars provide a space to share ideas, learn and foster critical thinking through an open, interdisciplinary lens.

The session was opened by the rector, Dr Alfonso Méndiz, who emphasised the importance of thought within university life: “Thinking inwardly is the true beginning,” he stated “The value of thought at university is one of the most important values. If you want to understand the world and learn to think, think for yourselves.”

Dr Andrea Rodríguez, director of the CIP, then presented the Institute’s project, reiterating its mission to foster meaningful dialogue between disciplines in order to address the major challenges of contemporary culture. “Culture means taking care of oneself in order to grow as a person and mature intellectually,” she noted. “Thinking in the context of ChatGPT challenges us to consider our ability to develop truly critical thought.”
 

The value of university thought and culture as a shared challenge

In his presentation, Dr Higinio Marín, lecturer in Philosophical Anthropology, reflected on “The origin of the university and the value of thought at the university”. He argued for the need to rediscover the university’s raison d’être, “The Western university system is in a critical state of amnesia,” he warned, stressing that “the university is the place where society grants the time for those who see knowledge as a way of life.”

According to Marín, the university can only thrive when it remains faithful to its contemplative nature, “The university operates under a regime of abundance, the larger and more qualified the academic staff, the greater the university becomes.”

Dr Gregorio Luri, also a philosopher and lecturer in Philosophical Anthropology, addressed the topic “Culture and critical thinking in response to today’s challenges”. Luri cautioned against a society that confuses technological progress with human progress, “We are witnessing remarkable advances in every field of knowledge, but the sum of these advances does not amount to progress with a capital P,” he stated.

He highlighted the paradox of the digital age: “Today, information is so abundant that it is increasingly losing its value. We cannot think unless we have something to think about. Thinking is difficult, but it is the result – or the effort – of a life,” he concluded.
 

A collective reflection on thought in the digital age

The seminar concluded with a dialogue moderated by Dr Montserrat Nebrera, which opened up an exchange between speakers and attendees on the limits and possibilities of critical thinking in a context shaped by the emergence of artificial intelligence. 

The interdisciplinary seminar series will continue in February with “What is thinking?”, featuring Raül Garrigassait and Pep Martorell, and will conclude in June with “What are the limits of thinking?”, led by Enric F. Gel and Gabriel Fernández Borsot. Through these seminars, the CIP would like to invite the university community to continue exploring, across disciplines, the meaning and depth of contemporary thought.