Max Tegmark | The rise of AI: opportunities and challenges

Max Tegmark — a professor and researcher in #AI and physics at #MIT, as well as the president of the Future of Life Institute and author of two bestsellers and over 250 publications — was the first thought leader to speak at Synapse. Setting the tone for the event, Tegmark gave a forward-looking keynote on the future of AI — the opportunities it promises, the challenges it will bring, and its place in society.

[rickcoyne]

Fantastic Video Max!!! Yes it needs to be be formed democratically.

[tsb]

I don’t get why the question about the mountain with the heads was thought to be so difficult. I got St Paul in two minutes using Google maps and Google search….the only intelligence required was to realise that the subject was ‘currently in’ South Dakota because no information had been given about any further travels after he arrived at Mount Rushmore…an AI would take that for granted because that was all the info it had, whereas a human might get stuck thinking “well it doesn’t say where he currently is”.

[supremereader]

How will we know if Ai is ever conscious ?

[Blackbird]

AI will eat our jobs faster than we can invent new ones, all sectors of society will be affected-just look at how few motor car workers there are left today lin the industry because of the introduction of robots. There will be few things left for us to do that can not be done quicker and more accurately by an AI-powered system so how will our society cope with so much unprecedented human obsolescence?

[senorphilu]

I don't think optimism is warranted given the genetically determined primitive drives and resulting stupid, cruel and self-defeating behaviors which humanity has demonstrated that it is unable to transcend except in too limited numbers and too limited degrees to produce a good result for us.

[tag]

I hate to say it but, Max's demeanor and his ability to speak clearly and fluently don't match up with lectures I have heard him give in the past. His ideas and freedom to articulate his ideas openly seem to be being stressed by his association with entities like Google. Is that why he seems to be hesitating while he decides whether his words will satisfy his masters? - or is it just that time is taking its toll on his speaking I recall much better from him.

[tag]

The host asked a question at the end of the lecture about the Microsoft "friend in your pocket". He mentioned, and seems to have no problem accepting, without question, that the conversations with it included racist and insulting comments - I would really like to know who decided what a "racist comment" was considering who/what is judging what acceptable language and "misinformation" is these days. I get the feeling that this host is a super liberal.

Max's responses about Europe being such a democratic group (and so much better at it than the "Americans") doesn't seem to take into account that it has a terrible track record for being governed by dictators and ROYALTY - not to mention socialists, Marxists, communists and the like. How many times has the US pulled their arses out of the fire? I think he needs to check the filters on his lenses. They (Europe) want to steer the world in the "right direction"? They don't even know how to read a compass! I'm definitely not comfortable with them deciding what is the "right direction" or their ability to manage it even if they can come up with it. We have never had an individual, group, society, cult, religion, government, or nation that has been able to perform that miracle.

If we can't control it should we build it? Of course not, but we will because we can and like Max said "because there is so much money and power in it". The two most important factors to the human race. We will do it with the usual disregard for the consequences - just like we have done with everything else of importance. Humans just don't yet (if ever) have the common sense, judgement, humility, moral compass, self control, empathy, or just about any of the qualities it takes to develop something this powerful without using it improperly. Take a look at how poorly we have introduced the internet and social media to society - and we want to let this enormously powerful technology loose on the world? Take a look at the scumbags who are running the world now and tell me they are capable of developing this technology without screwing it up.