Artificial intelligence ( AI ) could play a crucial role in reducing wars and conflicts, said Tom Yuan, a Stanford University computer science junior, at the NEX-T Summit 2025 hosted by NextFin.AI and Global Asian Leadership Alliance ( GALA ) in Silicon Valley.
At the panel "Next-Gen Perspectives: Youth Voices in the AI Era" on September 27, he joined discussions with Elaine Du, a director, producer, actor, photographer, athlete and founder; Cindy Ren, a junior at Tabor Academy; and Catherine Chen, a sophomore at the Nueva School.
Yuan, also the builder of the world's first RL agent ensemble for Roblox Playtesting, argued that wars often do not arise when one side is decisively stronger than the other, but take place when one party misjudges its opponent's strength. Yuan noted that if humanity could build an AI world model that remains neutral, accurate, and efficient, it might prevent such miscalculations — and in doing so, help eliminate many wars.
"I think AI could help reduce the number of wars and battles," said Yuan. He paused briefly before elaborating, "Think about it this way — when does war really happen? It doesn't happen when one side is clearly stronger and both know it. War happens when one side underestimates the other. If we could build an AI world model that's neutral, accurate, and efficient, it might eliminate those misjudgments — and with it, many wars."
Yuan's reasoning underscores a deeper optimism — that intelligence, when detached from human ego and bias, could become a stabilizing force in geopolitics. His vision of AI as a neutral arbiter capable of preventing conflict painted a striking picture of a future where machines serve as instruments of peace rather than division.
Ren, a U.S. Biology Olympiad Global Gold Medalist and Alzheimer's researcher at Harvard Medical School's Brigham & Women's Hospital, offered her take on humanity's other great battle — aging and disease.
"If AI could solve one big challenge, I feel like it would be longevity," she said. "I work in Alzheimer's, and it's heartbreaking, around 70% of senior deaths in the U.S. are related to cognitive disorders."
Ren, also an intern at Wovenly ( Dementia Support ) and a leader at Kindness Matters Inc., envisions a world where AI-powered digital twins — virtual replicas of human bodies and brains — could revolutionize medicine. "Imagine building a model of yourself where we can predict diseases before they happen, without invasive procedures," she explained. "That's the direction I believe AI in science should go — not just treating illness, but preserving human life and dignity."
Chen, also a member of the iSing Silicon Valley Choir, echoed that sentiment — but turned it toward the emotional and universal. "If I could solve one problem, it would be cancer or other serious diseases that still don't have a cure," she said. "Everyone knows someone who's suffered from it. Even with all our new resources, we still lose so many lives."
For Chen, who is passionate about combining neuroscience, psychology, and music to understand human behavior, AI's potential lies in humanizing technology — using data and computation to amplify compassion. "I think AI could help us find cures faster, but more importantly, it could help us understand the emotional side of illness — what patients feel and how they cope," she added.
Du, who has been experimenting with AI for cultural preservation, expanded the discussion beyond human biology to the preservation of human heritage. "My personal focus is culture and culture preservation," Du said. "We're using motion capture and AI to digitize local art craftsmanship — sewing, pottery, traditional symbols — from ethnic groups across China. Some of these are fading away, and AI helps us capture their beauty and meaning before they disappear."
Her project combines motion capture with AI-driven symbolic modeling, allowing users to recreate ethnic sewing patterns and pottery designs through an interactive interface. "You can type a word, and the system will generate patterns that follow the symbolic logic of that culture," she explained. "It makes art creation accessible while keeping it authentic."
In a digital age often criticized for erasing nuance, Du's work illustrates how AI can protect diversity instead of flattening it by encoding cultural knowledge into living, creative systems.
But even as these young innovators described AI's transformative potential, they also voiced concerns about its pitfalls.
Ren raised the issue of ethical boundaries, especially in science. "AI could accelerate genetic engineering, but that brings risks," she cautioned, referencing the infamous 2018 gene-editing scandal involving CRISPR-modified babies in China. "Before we integrate AI into genetics or medicine, we need stronger ethical frameworks and regulations."
She also highlighted the growing digital divide, noting that children in rural or underprivileged areas have far less access to AI education. Through her nonprofit Kindness Matters Inc., Ren is developing an AI-powered literacy platform to help children learn to read and write their own stories. "We've collected over 300 children's books to build an adaptive reading system, like a personalized tutor," she said. "AI shouldn't widen inequality — it should close the gap."
Yuan, meanwhile, touches on another modern dilemma: how to discern truth in an AI-saturated world. "It's getting harder to tell what text or image is generated by AI and what's not," he said. "That's a real problem for trust — in journalism, science, medicine. If we can't tell what's real, even training future AI models becomes risky."
He said the solution lies in better understanding how AI learns language. "When you train large models, you need high-quality data," he explained. "If AI starts training on AI-generated content, you end up in a feedback loop that erodes meaning."
Du added a philosophical layer, reflecting on AI's impact on memory and perception. "As a photographer, I worry about AI-generated images that look as real as photos," she said. "It changes how we form memories. If everything can be simulated, what happens to our sense of what's real?"
Amid these questions, the panel returned to what might be AI's greatest challenge — not just shaping the future, but ensuring that humans remain at its center.
"Philosophy is about finding meaning in life," Yuan said, concluding the discussion on a reflective note. "AI might help us live longer, maybe even forever. But what's the point if we forget how to live meaningfully?"
The sentiment resonated across the conference. Whether they were coding neural networks, choreographing dances from brainwave data, or programming cultural preservation tools, these young voices shared a common belief: AI's true power lies not in replacing humanity — but in reminding us what makes us human.
In their hands, the future of AI looks less like a race toward automation and more like a collective effort to amplify creativity, empathy, and wisdom — values as timeless as the human spirit itself.
