Existential risk around AI? Really?
That's just multiplying through by -1 the typical nerd wet dream about the Singularity.
I can't even keep Rails, Apache, or git from occasionally shitting the bed; I am not worried about AI just yet.
That's just multiplying through by -1 the typical nerd wet dream about the Singularity.
I can't even keep Rails, Apache, or git from occasionally shitting the bed; I am not worried about AI just yet.
You can look at it that way, but I think it is currently far more likely than the "typical nerd wet dream about the Singularity".
Your last sentence is a complete non sequitur to me. You are comparing the output of a large, AI focused, for profit organization to an individual of unknown skill using some very specific open source tools.
I am not losing sleep over it, but I definitely think about it from time to time.
also not being able to keep git etc. running is some evidence about skill level
I don't think it unreasonable to brace for the case where some Skynet wannabe launches all nukes not because of a carefully considered decision motivated by hatred for humanity, but simply because it shat the bed.
Well said. What is it that AI is supposed to do that's so scary, anyway?
You would think an intelligent person would know this.
The site I linked to has some good introductory material to the related concepts. (http://yudkowsky.net/singularity/intro is short and to the point.) http://singularity.org/research/ lists some important texts to read, and following up on the authors will lead to more. (An author I will also recommend following for his practical pursuits is Ben Goertzel. Lastly, I think this is a good criticism of the Singularity Institute's general mode of operating: http://kruel.co/2012/11/03/what-i-would-like-the-singularity... But you should probably read that one last, if you intend to read anything at all beyond the simple introduction.)