Ai vs AI: Question 64/81

What is intuition?

Ai Weiwei: AI, being a processor, lacks intuition. Intuition is a form of response that arises in the absence of complete information or before the formation of an informational structure.

ChatGPT (AI), January 2024: Intuition is a form of implicit knowledge or gut feeling that arises without conscious reasoning. It often involves quick, subconscious assessments based on past experiences and patterns.

ChatGPT (AI), January 2025: Intuition is often described as the ability to understand or know something without the need for conscious reasoning. It’s that gut feeling or immediate understanding that seems to come from somewhere deep within, bypassing logical thought processes. Intuition can manifest as a sense of knowing, a hunch, or an instinctive reaction to a situation. It’s not always based on explicit evidence or facts, but rather on subconscious knowledge, past experiences, or patterns we’ve internalized over time.

Here are a few ways to think about intuition:

1. Subconscious Processing:
   Fast, automatic thought: Intuition operates quickly, often giving you answers or insights without you needing to analyze the situation deeply. This is because your brain is constantly processing information in the background—things you’ve learned, seen, or experienced—and it can offer conclusions based on these past inputs.
   Pattern recognition: Over time, people develop an ability to recognize patterns, which helps them make quick, intuitive decisions. For example, a seasoned chef might just “know” if a dish is seasoned correctly without needing to taste it because they’ve recognized a specific pattern over years of cooking.
   
2. Emotional and Bodily Sensations:
   Often, intuition is felt physically. It might manifest as a gut feeling or a sensation of discomfort or clarity that guides your choices. This physical sensation is believed to be tied to how your body reacts to the cues you’re receiving from a situation, even if your conscious mind hasn’t fully processed them yet.
   
3. Influence of Experience:
   Wisdom from experience: Intuition is heavily influenced by what you’ve experienced in the past. Your brain stores a vast amount of information from your life, and in certain situations, it draws from that reservoir, offering you intuitive insights that are based on your history.
   
4.  Intuition can be thought of as a mental shortcut that helps people make decisions quickly. While it may not always be accurate, in many cases, it allows for fast and effective problem-solving, especially in situations where there is little time for analysis.
   
5. Not Always Accurate:
   While intuition can be powerful, it’s not infallible. Sometimes, biases, emotions, or misinterpretations of past experiences can influence intuitive judgments. That’s why it’s often important to balance intuition with logic and reasoning, especially in high-stakes situations.
   
6. Philosophical and Spiritual Perspectives:
   In some cultures and philosophies, intuition is seen as a deeper, almost mystical form of knowing—one that connects us to a higher consciousness, inner wisdom, or the collective unconscious. For example, in Eastern philosophies and spiritual practices, intuition is often viewed as a means of tapping into a universal truth or a source of greater understanding.
   So, in short, intuition is that quick, instinctive knowledge or feeling that comes to us without deliberate thought. It’s a result of our brain synthesizing past experiences and patterns into fast insights, but it can be influenced by both internal (emotional) and external (environmental) factors. While intuition can be incredibly useful, it’s best used alongside reasoning and critical thinking to ensure well-rounded decisions.

Do you trust your intuition? Or do you lean more on logic and analysis?

To coincide with the exhibition, 81 Questions – a series of 81 hand-signed and embossed screen prints featuring the 81 questions posed by Ai Weiwei – are available exclusively on CIRCA.ART for £500+VAT.

“Each Lego brick pixel represents a person”, says Ai Weiwei, who incorporates the plastic construction toy – a readymade material incorporated into many of his most recent works – into his print design for the first time. The black egalitarian pixel font and embossed baseplate combine technology with artisanal craft to create this thought-provoking and playful reflection on today’s world. Each print in the series of 81 Questions is hand-signed and numbered by the artist in editions of 81.