Alternative visions for a fragmented world

Unlocking Hope: Crafting Alternative Futures with AI in a Fragmented World

Ari Kuschnir, Founder and New Wave Storyteller at m ss ng p eces, opened his Web Summit Lisbon 2025 session by inviting the audience to connect with their hearts. His core message: “Another world is possible” through AI. He highlighted global fragmentation and his mission to craft “counter visions” challenging this broken reality.

Mr. Kuschnir demonstrated his vision with “Love Force One,” a video inspired by a financial gift to Donald Trump. He imagined an impossible, unifying scenario aboard Trump’s plane, creating a narrative countering political divisions. This piece aimed to inspire new thinking, moving beyond the pervasive “distracted while destructing” societal myth.

He stressed creating from childlike wonder, drawing inspiration from making AI videos with his daughter, Luna. This uninhibited, playful approach is fundamental. Mr. Kuschnir explained his process involves responding to cultural moments in real-time, leveraging 25 years of expertise in editing and storytelling.

Key examples include “Trump Ayahuasca,” depicting a hypothetical psychedelic experience leading to Trump’s profound self-reflection and spiritual healing. Another, “Prodigal Musk,” was conceived during the anticipated fallout between Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Mr. Kuschnir utilized these figures as archetypes to convey deeper messages, noting their broad appeal across the political spectrum.

He clarified these are not simple “button-press” creations but involve meticulous prompting, scene development, and expert editing. His objective is to transform culture, not merely engage in politics. This includes his video featuring the “fake French detective,” a 15-year-old who gained viral fame.

Inspired by French cinema, Mr. Kuschnir crafted a story of this character solving the Louvre case, later collaborating with the real teenager. This exemplified his method of using intuition to elevate cultural moments into fresh narratives. He detailed his AI video creation process, showing how he uses tools like Runway to generate specific shots from renders, refines stills, and converts them into video clips.

He emphasized the iterative nature, addressing visual distortions, and the critical role of selecting appropriate music, sound effects, and precise editing. He showcased “MAGA Ballroom 2028,” an invitation video exploring the consequences of actions, designed to instill hope within challenging political contexts.

Finally, Mr. Kuschnir addressed the collective future, observing that current AI defaults often present a dystopian vision. He and his partner, Skyler, are actively working to redefine this narrative. They organized a workshop in Amsterdam, blending ancient circle-gathering with modern AI to collectively envision a better future.

Inspired by children playing in an eco-village maze, they produced a video filled with diverse, optimistic futures. Mr. Kuschnir concluded by advocating for millions of hopeful images and videos to counter nihilism, promoting post-political, empathetic, and intuitive approaches. He urged everyone to contribute their unique gifts to foster a world centered on life, Earth, and connected technology.