At a time when artificial intelligence (AI) is redefining human experience, French writer and traveler Sylvain Tesson argues that the real challenge is not technological progress, but preserving the balance between culture and humanity’s natural instincts. A recipient of three of France’s four major literary honors — the Prix Goncourt (2009), Prix Médicis (2011) and Prix Renaudot (2019) — Tesson outlined his philosophy of travel and writing and reflected on the evolving relationship between humanity and the natural world at a press conference at the French Embassy in Seoul, Wednesday. Born in 1972 and trained in geography, Tesson began undertaking extreme journeys and expeditions at an early age, publishing his first book in his 20s. He gained recognition for travels in harsh natural environments, including crossing the Alps on skis and for writing grounded in those experiences. His work has long focused on reconciling the dual poles of the human condition — civilization and nature. Reflecting on his lifelong devotion to travel and literature, the author described travel as t