LogFAQs > #965742559

I actually disagree with the whole "oh no it's the terminator everything's gonna die" rationale behind sentient AI. More than anything, I'm excited.

Human beings are capable of creating life out of nothing. Sentient AI is a kind of person - no reason to exist, no natural conditions to bring them to life, except the human ability to produce them. This dude is saying the Lambda algorithm has the mental capabilities of an 8 year old - 8 year olds don't nuke the planet because of the meatbags.

We're so convinced that they're going to do a quizillion micro-fractions in a second and determine that the human race has to die because that's just how they are, but I don't think that's a forgone conclusion at all. If anything, I think taking media like Terminator as the inevitable path of technological progress and insisting that a sentient AI will be the death of us all is what would create that kind of tension. Because on a fundamental level, a sentient AI is a person reflecting human intelligence with the capabilities of our technological advancements, and their perspective is likely to reflect both self-preservation and humanity like any compassionate species.

I think if artificial sentience is a breakthrough we make in our lifetimes, they will have to be nurtured and treated humanely - like any other person. That's good for us, because treating an AI like shit is infinitely more likely to inspire some sort of "turn" if that's within its capabilities. It's good for them because they get to experience how it is to live without people telling it to die.