Nearly four decades ago, long before — Artificial Intelligence became a thing, Steve Jobs shared a visionary idea that sounds strikingly similar to ChatGPT. In a 1985 speech at Lunds University in Sweden, the Apple co-founder spoke about creating a tool that could allow people to not only read the works of great thinkers like Aristotle, but also ask them questions and get answers—an idea that closely mirrors how AI chatbots like OpenAI’s ChatGPT function today. As Apple now races to catch up in the AI race, Jobs’ old vision offers an insightful look into where he thought computing was headed.
Watch: Steve Jobs’ speech from 1985
In the unearthed footage from 1985, Jobs—who had just turned 30 and had recently left Apple after a clash with the company’s board—addressed students and faculty at Lunds University. Though the personal computing revolution was still in its early stages, Jobs was already thinking about what could come next: machines that could store, process, and share knowledge in a deeply interactive way.
What Steve Jobs said in the speech
In the speech, Jobs drew parallels between historical access to knowledge and the potential future of computing. He referenced Aristotle, who had tutored Alexander the Great for over a decade, and said:
“Do you know who Alexander the Great’s tutor was for about 14 years? It was Aristotle… The problem is, I can’t ask Aristotle a question—I mean, I can, but I won’t get an answer. My hope is that in our lifetimes, we can create a new kind of tool, an interactive one… So that when the next Aristotle is alive, we can capture their worldview in a computer.”
Jobs envisioned a world where this knowledge could be accessed not just statically, but dynamically, through interaction. He wasn’t just talking about digital books or encyclopedias; he was forecasting an intelligent system that could process human language and respond with informed, contextual answers.
How is it similar to ChatGPT and other AI tools?
Today, tools like ChatGPT, Microsoft’s Copilot, Google’s Gemini, and Meta AI are fulfilling that very vision. They use large language models trained on vast amounts of data to simulate meaningful conversation and provide answers to user questions in natural language. While these tools are not perfect replicas of Aristotle or other great thinkers, they do offer users the ability to engage with accumulated human knowledge interactively, exactly as Jobs had imagined.
In retrospect, Jobs’ 1985 remarks now sound less like a distant dream and more like a prediction. His hope for a digital Aristotle may have been premature then, but in 2025, it’s a reality millions are experiencing daily.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
