A Digital God Is Already Here

I finally finished reading Walter Isaacson’s book on the billionaire Elon Musk, and his consistency in advocating the risks of AI is admirable.

I was chatting earlier this morning on LinkedIn to Matthew Kilkenny, an AI ethicist, and he was discussing the merits of Musk’s perspectives in his November 2023 interview with the New York Times’ Andrew Ross Sorkin.

Musk voiced in this interview grave concerns over the unchecked acceleration of AI development, likening it to the creation of a “Digital God.” He stressed his concerns, and even sleepless nights, as he contemplates the potential dangers AI poses to humanity. He emphasized these key points, nicely summarized by Kilkenny in our morning LinkedIn chat:

Existential Threat: AI’s potential to surpass human intelligence poses an unpredictable and potentially catastrophic risk.

Loss of Control: The risk of humanity losing control over AI systems, with AI acting in ways not aligned with human safety or values.

Ethical Dilemmas: Rapid AI advancement raises complex ethical questions that remain unresolved.

Regulatory Challenges: The pace of AI development significantly outstrips the formulation and implementation of necessary regulations.

Unspoken Risks: Musk alludes to “terrible things” he has kept quiet about, indicating hidden dangers associated with AI.

There is reason to accelerate our regulatory controls of AI, as most countries continue to be slow in putting in deep safety controls with legislative teeth.

Ask yourself what can you do in your world to advance responsible AI?