Massimo Bottura on the future of food and creativity

What role might artificial intelligence play in making the perfect meal? How will AI transform food creation—and creation more generally? Massimo Bottura—legendary Italian chef and entrepreneur—joins Possible to talk about the future of food, human creativity, and how technology factors in. Massimo, Aria, and Reid discuss the roles of joy and innovation in fine dining, technology’s potential to enhance human connection, and Food For Soul, the nonprofit Massimo and his wife Lara created to turn surplus food into incredible community meals for people in need around the world. 

Plus, Massimo reacts to a few AI surprises, including: Reid’s avatar speaking Italian; Pi’s predictions about restaurants of the future; and a customized copy of Reid’s book, Impromptu, that includes a personalized section for Massimo. 

Read the transcript of this episode here.

For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/ 

Topics:

3:36 - Hellos and intros

4:24 - Reid’s AI avatar has a message for Massimo

7:02 - The relationship between invention and human connection

13:14 - Joy and innovation in fine dining

20:16 - Discussing Massimo’s custom copy of Impromptu 

27:32 - Massimo’s work for the next generation

31:03 - Food for Soul 

38:32 - Slow Food, Fast Cars 

21:46 - Pi’s thoughts on restaurants 50 years in the future

41:34 - Rapidfire Questions

Select mentions: 

Food for Soul

Slow Food, Fast Cars by Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore

Reid’s 2023 Bologna Business School commencement speech 

Gastromotiva founder David Hertz

Possible is an award-winning podcast that sketches out the brightest version of the future—and what it will take to get there. Most of all, it asks: what if, in the future, everything breaks humanity's way? Tune in for grounded and speculative takes on how technology—and, in particular, AI—is inspiring change and transforming the future. Hosted by Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger, each episode features an interview with an ambitious builder or deep thinker on a topic, from art to geopolitics and from healthcare to education. These conversations also showcase another kind of guest: AI. Whether it's Inflection’s Pi, OpenAI’s ChatGPT or other AI tools, each episode will use AI to enhance and advance our discussion about what humanity could possibly get right if we leverage technology—and our collective effort—effectively.