Spiritual Reboot: How AI Is Redefining the Meaning of Life

The New Divide: AI vs. Spirituality

In 2023, 64% of American adults stated that technology influences their spiritual lives. Significantly, 30% noted it actually eases access to religious practices, citing meditation apps and online worship streams (Pew Research Center, 2023).

However, a closer look reveals a troubling trend. Apps like Calm and Headspace, which boasted 100 million and 70 million downloads respectively in 2024, offer mindfulness sessions inspired by Buddhism but often strip away its deep philosophical roots. Consequently, spirituality risks becoming a consumer product.

Is Digital Spirituality Replacing the Temple?

“Technology simplifies spirituality, essentially reducing it to a commodity,” says Dr. Lisa Miller, a psychologist and researcher at Columbia University who studies spirituality’s impact on mental health.

Therefore, we must ask: Can simply clicking “meditate now” truly replace centuries-old contemplative traditions? Buddhism, with its emphasis on mindfulness and non-attachment, lends itself easily to digital adaptation. Apps promote breathing techniques and focus, but they largely skip reflections on impermanence or compassion.

As Diamond Way Buddhist teacher Lama Ole Nydahl observes, “Technology can be a tool, but without conscious intention, it becomes a trap.” Ultimately, users gain temporary relief but don’t necessarily move closer to a deeper understanding of the meaning of life.

A Lesson from Her: Technology and the Meaning of Life

The 2013 movie Her, starring Joaquin Phoenix as Theodore, who falls in love with an operating system named Samantha, poses a crucial question: Can technology fill the existential void? Theodore, lonely and adrift, finds in Samantha not just a companion, but a temporary sense of existence.

The film illustrates how readily humans project their needs onto technology, but also how fleeting these artificial bonds are. Sherry Turkle, a technology philosopher at MIT, comments, “Her is a parable about our yearning for intimacy in a world where technology promises everything but delivers no lasting fulfillment.”

Do Machines Understand Love?

Studies confirm that relationships with technology deeply affect one’s sense of purpose. A 2024 Stanford University report found that 42% of young adults (aged 18–34) feel more lonely despite constant media use.

Algorithms, which amplify polarization and consumption, frequently distract us from genuine self-reflection. As Alan Watts, whose voice appears in Her, once wrote: “Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.”

Technology often compounds this sense of being lost, offering only an illusion of answers. Furthermore, during the observance of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day in November, many turn their thoughts to loved ones who have passed—and to the profound questions that technology often drowns out in the daily rush.

Lost in the Digital Noise

Modern individuals, bombarded by notifications and data, are increasingly groping in the dark for meaning. By 2025, the global number of social media users surpassed 5.1 billion, and the average user spends 2.5 hours per day on these platforms.

Crucially, that is time that could be dedicated to introspection or human connection.

“Social media steals our time for thinking about what truly matters,” notes Dr. Cal Newport, author of Digital Minimalism.

Meanwhile, algorithms constantly suggest new needs: a new product, a like, a notification. As a result, Oxford University research from 2024 shows that 57% of users feel overwhelmed by information overload, which intensifies their feeling of existential emptiness. The technology that promised liberation may now be a new form of captivity.

Can Technology Be Spiritual?

Is it possible to reconcile technology and spirituality? Some believe so. Meditation apps or social platforms like X enable the exchange of ideas and access to spiritual teachings. Users share quotes from the Dalai Lama or reflections on mindfulness, proving that technology can inspire.

But the question remains: Is digital spirituality an authentic search for meaning, or merely another form of consumption? In the future, AIs—like Samantha from Her—could potentially act as spiritual guides, tailoring teachings to individual needs. Nevertheless, can a machine truly comprehend the depth of human existential longing?

Another perspective suggests that technology actually forces us to redefine spirituality. Perhaps the Buddhist principle of impermanence is more relevant today than ever: technology is transient, and meaning requires conscious choice.

“In the age of algorithms, the AI spirituality and sense of purpose may be found in the skill of unplugging from the noise and returning to simplicity,” suggests Dr. Brené Brown, a researcher of human emotions.

Groping Our Way to Meaning

During the reflective November days, the question of life’s meaning resurfaces—not in the form of data, but in emotion and memory. Her concludes with Theodore’s reflection on the fragility of human connection and the necessity of authenticity. Today’s world, dominated by algorithms, presents us with a similar challenge.

Technology can be a tool—like meditation apps—but it is often a trap that pulls us away from deeper reflection. In 2025, as X and other platforms shape our perception of the world, it is vital to ask: Are we seeking meaning in likes, or in the silence? Ultimately, many religions remind us that the answer lies within ourselves. Technology can point the way, but we must walk it ourselves—sometimes by groping in the dark.

Read the original article in Polish: