WTI Inspiring Speaker: Alison Gopnik | December 11, 2025

“Three ages and three intelligences: Exploit, explore, empower,” by Alison Gopnik Distinguished Professor of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley In this talk, Gopnik argues that there is no such thing as general intelligence. Instead, different types of intelligences trade-off against each other and are characteristic of different developmental periods. Adults engage in exploitation, whereas children are adapted for exploration and elders for care and cultural transmission. Presented by the Wu Tsai Institute, Yale University. Recorded at 100 College Street in New Haven, CT on December 11, 2025. This talk is part of the WTI Inspiring Speaker Series, the Institute’s signature colloquium series featuring an interdisciplinary lineup of speakers selected for their leading-edge research that advances understanding of cognition and for their ability to bridge and communicate across disciplines. Learn more at wti.yale.edu/inspiring-speaker-series.