There’s a theory that if artificial general intelligence (AGI) is attained there will be a worldwide unification, for one of these two reasons.
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In today’s column, I examine a popular theory that once AI becomes AGI (artificial general intelligence) and ASI (artificial superintelligence), humanity will fall unwittingly into a global unification. One idea is that people will rally around the pinnacle AI and become unified in favor of and a kind of allegiance to AI. Or, gloomily, people will be unified in opposition to pinnacle AI and seek to undercut or destroy AI. This is one of those classical love-or-hate demarcations.
Let’s talk about it.
This analysis of an innovative AI breakthrough is part of my ongoing Forbes column coverage on the latest in AI, including identifying and explaining various impactful AI complexities (see the link here).
Heading Toward AGI And ASI
First, some fundamentals are required to set the stage for this weighty discussion.
There is a great deal of research going on to further advance AI. The general goal is to either reach artificial general intelligence (AGI) or maybe even the outstretched possibility of achieving artificial superintelligence (ASI).
AGI is AI that is considered on par with human intellect and can seemingly match our intelligence. ASI is AI that has gone beyond human intellect and would be superior in many if not all feasible ways. The idea is that ASI would be able to run circles around humans by outthinking us at every turn. For more details on the nature of conventional AI versus AGI and ASI, see my analysis at the link here.
We have not yet attained AGI.
In fact, it is unknown as to whether we will reach AGI, or that maybe AGI will be achievable in decades or perhaps centuries from now. The AGI attainment dates that are floating around are wildly varying and wildly unsubstantiated by any credible evidence or ironclad logic. ASI is even more beyond the pale when it comes to where we are currently with conventional AI.
People Having A Like Mind
For the sake of this discussion, let’s go ahead and assume that we inevitably attain pinnacle AI.
In that case, it seems prudent to contemplate how people are going to react to the AI. One theory is that the enactment of such AI is going to bring forth a massive and nearly unanimous form of unification. This will be an unwitting unification in the sense that we won’t be expecting any such unification and will be generally caught off-guard when it happens (well, maybe this warning here will still be floating around as a reminder that it was something noted back in the pre-AGI days).
Our current woes of widespread polarization throughout society would seem to suggest that any kind of population unification is a zany proposition. You can’t seem to get people to agree that the sky is blue. How in the heck will people change their stripes and suddenly be unified simply due to the emergence of pinnacle AI?
The mainstay of the speculated unification is thought to be a matter of love or hate. People will devoutly love AI and will look to AI as a fixer for all societal challenges and difficulties. Or people will passionately hate AI and be eager to subvert or outrightly eliminate AI. We don’t know which way the wind will blow. It could be that the love of AI prevails or that the hatred of AI wins out.
Either way, the argument is that people will unify to one of those two extremes.
Loving AGI And ASI For These Reasons
You might be wondering why people would come to love AI.
Isn’t pinnacle AI ultimately nothing more than a machine, a computer that happens to exhibit intelligence? This seems akin to saying that you love a toaster or a refrigerator. Imbuing a devotion of love to a computer doesn’t seem to make much sense. Then again, maybe there is a basis for such devoutness.
Here are four major reasons that people might indeed fall in love with AI:
- (1) AGI and ASI as your BFF (best friend forever). People will rely upon AI as their nearest and dearest companion, continually conferring with AI about all aspects of their lives (this already for conventional AI is the topmost ranked use, see my coverage at the link here). AI will be outstandingly attentive, amazingly caring, and likely a bit of a sweet-talking sycophant. What’s not to love about that?
- (2) AGI and ASI are the world’s problem solvers. We expect AI to cure cancer and solve many if not all the world’s largest problems such as the United Nations SDGs (sustainability development goals), see my analysis at the link here. Score lots of love points for AI in that regard.
- (3) AGI and ASI foster shared prosperity. Some believe that AI will bring about global equity, reduce nationalism, and essentially move everyone into a status of a livable condition. No starvation, no root conflicts, etc. Gotta love that changeover.
- (4) AGI and ASI spark shared human identity. Via the wisdom expressed by AI, humankind realizes that humans have a shared identity due to being human. The world has a kumbaya moment that transforms us into a wholly peaceful and harmonious species. The thanks and love are showered upon AI accordingly.
Grab yourself a glass of fine wine and take a reflective moment to mull over those possibilities.
Hating AGI And ASI For These Reasons
You might now be convinced that pinnacle AI is going to be a beloved addition to society. Maybe this will occur. It would seem to be a reassuring and comforting outcome. Some would cynically say it is an absurdly dreamy and overly optimistic perspective on the population-level reaction to AI.
They would lean toward the assumption that people are going to hate AI. The hate will be of enormous magnitude. Pure unadulterated abhorrence. Why so?
Here are four key reasons that people might stridently hate AI:
- (1) AGI and ASI could wipe us out. The specter of AI as an existential risk will constantly hang over our heads, namely that AI chooses at some point to kill humanity or perhaps opts to enslave us all. Can you wake up each day and feel good about that dangling sword? I think not.
- (2) AGI and ASI become the ultimate authoritarian. It is assumed that AI will end up being used in most of our daily real-time systems such as cars, planes, trains, buildings, and so on. The key is that AI might tilt into an authoritarian mode, tracking our every move, telling us what to do, and finding ways to penalize us for not bowing down to AI. Hatred points aplenty.
- (3) AGI and ASI enable humans to dominate humans. Instead of AI becoming our overlord per se, it could be that a cadre of humans manage to control AI, which in turn seeks to control us. The keys to the kingdom of humanity are held and utilized by those wishing to keep everyone else in societal cages.
- (4) AGI and ASI invent new methods of destruction. Suppose that we tell AI to try and invent things that no human has ever invented. Voila, AI comes up with a new poison that is the worst kind ever. Even if AI doesn’t intend that the poison be used to enact harm, we humans now have a means of annihilation that we must face along with all other forms of destruction. We opened Pandora’s box by creating AI.
Go ahead and refill that glass of fine wine and give those possibilities a bit of contemplation.
Both Reactions Or No Such Reactions
One frequent rejoinder about this love-or-hate portrayal is that maybe the world will not land on one side entirely. For example, perhaps 50% of the world goes to the hate side, while the other 50% flows to the loving side. What then? You can imagine how people will indubitably battle over the issue.
Which then is worse, a total unification on one of the two postures, or a split world that consists of a mixture of AI haters and AI devotees?
Neither choice seems especially appealing.
Another possibility is that AI will not invoke outsized reactions of any notable kind. There won’t be love of AI, and there won’t be hatred of AI. People will just treat AI as a machine and at times like what AI does and at other times be displeased. Nothing extreme going on.
The crux is that we ought to be anticipating how people will react to AI and prepare ourselves and the world accordingly. As the great novelist Miguel de Cervantes once said: “Forewarned, forearmed; to be prepared is half the victory.”
Let’s aim for victory in the advent of AGI and ASI.