On April 19, 2021, the UCI Brain Initiative hosted its Dialogue Series: 4C the Future, where faculty from across the UCI campus discussed Consciousness. In this panel, Drs. Yama Akbari, Donald Hoffman, Megan Peters, and Theresa Jean Tanenbaum discussed their different views about one of humanity’s biggest mysteries: consciousness and free will. The panelists dove into a genuine dialogue on the nature of consciousness, our existence, and our subjective experiences; and explored the origin of consciousness, and its relationship with the physical world and free will.