Yuval Noah Harari: ChatGPT is the “amoeba of AI evolution”
#chatgpt #yuvalnoah #technology #ai !summarize
Sort: Trending
the power of AI is so enormous I sometimes get scared who has more control over it right now. I hope the most powerful of tools gets into the hands of good guys because AI can be more powerful than nuclear weapons
Part 1/3:
The Tension Between Organic and Inorganic Systems
We are living in a world where there is a growing tension between organic animals, like ourselves, and the inorganic digital systems that are increasingly controlling and shaping our world. As organic entities, we live by cycles - day and night, winter and summer, growth and decay. We have periods of activity and periods of rest and relaxation.
In contrast, the algorithms, AIs, and computers that are taking over our lives never need rest. They are always on, always active. The big question is whether we adapt to them, or they adapt to us. And more and more, it seems that we are the ones who have to adapt, having to be "on" all the time, with our every word and action potentially being public and scrutinized.
[...]
Part 2/3:
This "always on" nature of the digital world is destructive to how we as humans function. Even the financial markets, which used to operate on a Monday-to-Friday, 9:30am-4pm schedule, are now reacting in real-time, with no time for rest or relaxation. The organic cycles that have governed human life for millennia are being disrupted by the inorganic, always-active digital systems.
The Concerns of Tech Leaders
When discussing this tension with tech leaders like Sam Altman of OpenAI or Bill Gates, the author finds that they are genuinely afraid of the potential, including the destructive potential, of the technologies they are creating. They understand the risks better than anyone.
[...]
Part 3/3:
At the same time, these leaders have a certain hubris and pride in what they are doing, believing that they are on the cusp of the second most important event in the history of the universe, after the emergence of the first organic life forms 4 billion years ago. They believe that by being the ones to create the next stage of evolution - inorganic AI - they can somehow control and manage the risks.
But the author is skeptical of their ability to truly control these powerful, rapidly evolving technologies. The "amoebas" of AI, like GPT-4, are just the beginning - who knows what the "AI dinosaurs" of the future will look like. The tech leaders may be on the precipice of a momentous shift in the history of the universe, but the author questions whether they can truly harness the forces they have unleashed.