The Reading / Listening - Person of the Year - Level 5

TIME magazine has announced its 2025 Person of the Year. It goes to a group of people: the "architects of AI". The award is given to "the person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year". Some of the architects appear on TIME's cover. They include the CEOs of the world's top tech companies. TIME said the CEOs brought about "one of the biggest physical infrastructure projects of all time." It described 2025 as the year that AI "roared into view," showing its potential to change the world.

TIME's editor commented on giving the prize to the AI architects. He wrote that it was hard to watch anything without seeing or hearing news about the "rapid advancement of a technology and the people driving it". He said there have been "a million debates about how disruptive AI would be". He added that no business leader, student, or parent "could talk about the future without invoking the impact of this technological revolution". However, he also noted the negatives of AI. These include vast energy requirements, job losses, misinformation, and cyberattacks.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Person of the Year - Level 4 or  Person of the Year - Level 6

Sources
  • https://time.com/7339685/person-of-the-year-2025-ai-architects/
  • https://techcrunch.com/2025/12/11/time-names-architects-of-ai-its-person-of-the-year/
  • https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/12/11/time-person-of-the-year-2025-architects-ai/87714617007/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. It goes
  2. the person
  3. the news and our lives, for
  4. embodied what
  5. Some of the architects appear
  6. the biggest physical infrastructure
  7. the year that AI roared
  8. showing its potential
  1. projects
  2. was important
  3. to a group of people
  4. to change the world
  5. good or ill
  6. into view
  7. or persons
  8. on TIME's cover

Paragraph 2

  1. TIME's editor commented
  2. rapid
  3. a technology and the people
  4. debates about how disruptive
  5. the impact of this technological
  6. However, he also noted
  7. These include vast energy
  8. job losses, misinformation,
  1. revolution
  2. driving it
  3. and cyberattacks
  4. advancement
  5. the negatives of AI
  6. on giving the prize
  7. AI would be
  8. requirements

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

TIME magazine (1) ________________________________________________ 2025 Person of the Year. It goes to a group of people: the "architects of AI". The award is given to "the person or persons who (2) ________________________________________________ news and our lives, for good or ill, and (3) ________________________________________________ important about the year". Some of the architects appear on TIME's cover. They include the CEOs of the (4) ________________________________________________ companies. TIME said the CEOs brought about "one of (5) ________________________________________________ infrastructure projects of all time." It described 2025 as the year that AI "roared into view," (6) ________________________________________________ to change the world.

TIME's (7) ________________________________________________ giving the prize to the AI architects. He wrote that it was (8) ________________________________________________ anything without seeing or hearing news about the "(9) ________________________________________________ a technology and the people driving it". He said there have been "a million debates (10) ________________________________________________ AI would be". He added that no business leader, student, or parent "could talk about the future without (11) ________________________________________________ of this technological revolution". However, he also noted the negatives of AI. These (12) ________________________________________________ requirements, job losses, misinformation, and cyberattacks.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

TIMEmagazinehasannouncedits2025PersonoftheYear.Itgoestoagro
upofpeople:the"architectsofAI".Theawardisgivento"thepersonorpe
rsonswhomostaffectedthenewsandourlives,forgoodorill,andembodi
edwhatwasimportantabouttheyear".Someofthearchitectsappearon
TIME'scover.TheyincludetheCEOsoftheworld'stoptechcompanies.TI
MEsaidtheCEOsbroughtabout"oneofthebiggestphysicalinfrastructur
eprojectsofalltime."Itdescribed2025astheyearthatAI"roaredintovie
w,"showingitspotentialtochangetheworld.TIME'seditorcommentedo
ngivingtheprizetotheAIarchitects.Hewrotethatitwashardtowatchan
ythingwithoutseeingorhearingnewsaboutthe"rapidadvancementofa
technologyandthepeopledrivingit".Hesaidtherehavebeen"amilliond
ebatesabouthowdisruptiveAIwouldbe".Headdedthatnobusinesslead
er,student,orparent"couldtalkaboutthefuturewithoutinvokingtheim
pactofthistechnologicalrevolution".However,healsonotedthenegati
vesofAI.Theseincludevastenergyrequirements,joblosses,misinform
ation,andcyberattacks.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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