50% of A.I. researchers believe there’s a 10% or greater chance that humans go extinct from our inability to control A.I.   Sobering thought I know, but what can we do about it?

I have been watching a thought-provoking video presentation given by Tristan Harris & Aza Raskin filmed at a private gathering in San Francisco on March 9, 2023. The presentation was so compelling, I have in fact listened to it three times already— I have imbedded the video below for your reference.

Tristan Harris was a Google Design Ethicist, and is now the Co-founder & Director of the Centre for Humane Technology (CHT). You maybe familiar with his work through The Social Dilemma, or even viewed his TED Talks. Let’s just say he is well versed technology and the importance of consciously and ethically shaping the human spirit and human potential.

Now back to that video…

Tristin & Aza demonstrate how existing A.I. capabilities already pose catastrophic risks to a functional society. At present there are no safeguards in place to curtail tragic outcomes for society— instead there is a global arms race for domination, no matter the potential cost!

Both presenters were mindfully aware that not everything A.I. is bad, and in fact there are miraculous positives and generous outcomes that can improve human life on Earth. But the deep concerns raised focussed around A.I. not being deployed responsibly, and as Tristin & Aza note— 50% of A.I. researchers believe there’s a 10% or greater chance that humans go extinct from our inability to control A.I.

[Important Note: The video below was created before the release of ChatGPT4— hence the call to action is greater now more than ever.]

The Call for a Moratorium

On March 29, 2023, Elon Musk and a group of A.I. experts signed an open letter calling for a moratorium on developing artificial intelligence (AI) systems that are more powerful than OpenAI’s recently launched large language model (LLM), GPT-4. The letter, called on all AI labs to immediately pause, for at least six months, training of any systems more powerful than GPT-4.

If ChatGPT is new for you, you may wish to checkout out the video below to come up to speed.   And from a metaphysical perspective, I shared my insights into innovation & A.I. with the transition of Pluto into Aquarius until 2044— read my article & watch video here.

What’s the concern you may ask?

LLM are self-learning, they develop their own theory of mind— becoming more intelligent by the minute. However there is a grey area in how to ‘train’ A.I. to evolve it’s intelligence from both a moral & ethical standpoint. In fact new emergent capabilities are emerging with A.I. every day, but there are few compelling explanations for why such abilities emerge. A.I.’s evolutionary intelligence is scaling at such a great velocity, it has become impossible to predict or understand the future of these emerging capabilities.

Even as I write this article today, Geoffrey Hinton, the man widely considered as the “godfather” of artificial intelligence, has chosen to leave Google — with a message sharing his concerns about potential dangers stemming from the same technology he helped build. Resigning from his role has enabled Geoffrey to speak more openly about the risks.

Fast-Tracked A.I. Wars— ChatGPT4

It feels like the A.I. arms race war has fired ahead warp-speed style.  Even as I write this, the information I am presenting becomes obsolete as the capability of A.I. is accelerating at exponential rates.   Whilst my intention of this journal post has been to focus upon the risky concerns of LLM A.I.s, I felt guided to sprinkle it with some benefits— plus reflect upon the impact of A.I. on the future of jobs.

The video below highlights some of the possible positives of A.I., and how it purportedly could benefit our lifestyles.  This of course is all very questionable, why would be want to hand over our self-authority to something artificial— but maybe that is a whole other dialogue for another time.   

The video then also demonstrates the thin-line walked between that which serves us, compared with that which enslaves us.   And how corporate pressure has accelerated the deployment of A.I., before all the risks are fully know, let alone understood.

Whilst we are moving from the information age into the knowledge age— we need to embrace the Wisdom Age to keep alive our Human Radiance.

What does the founder of OpenAI have to say?

In this video, OpenAI cofounder Greg Brockman explores the underlying design principles of ChatGPT and demos some unreleased plug-ins for the chatbot.  After the talk, head of TED Chris Anderson joins Brockman to dig into the timeline of ChatGPT’s development and get Brockman’s take on the risks, raised by many in the tech industry and beyond, of releasing such a powerful tool into the world.  I included this video to give somewhat of an insight into A.I.— apologies the video does appear to ‘market/convince’ the viewer of its worth.

Where to from here?

As the self-learning capabilities of A.I. is currently an unknown quotient, we must presume their public deployment unsafe until proven otherwise.

However, believing that global players will take the moral high road and slow down the public deployment of LLM A.I.s of their own volition is most probably a pipe dream. There is too much money, power, control & the tantalising lure of world domination at stake— all in the hands of a few.

So how do we close the gap between what is happening & what needs to happen? I agree with the sentiments of Tristan & Aza, it is up to we the people to be the drivers of change. We need to be the instigators of conversations within our communities, and create tsunamis of global attention discussing the risks and potential deleterious fate of the Human race.

Through a groundswell of awareness & understanding, collectively we can find solutions and safe-guards that dramatically reduce the risk, whilst flourishing the potential benefits. But this conversation will be driven by we the people— you, me, friends, family, community— until a critical mass of millions & billions of souls choose a more compassionate reality.

Within the spectrum of our world we have on one side the Artificial Intelligence of the computing mind, and at the other end of the spectrum the infinite, enduring & expansive intelligence of Divine Heart-Mind. We have within us the capacity to bridge the opposition of the two forces and flourish our Human Radiance in co-creative capacities with the field. The question is, what do we choose?

Just like the unfolding lotus at the top of this page emerging out of the murky waters and blooming in vibrant synergy with natures wisdom— we too have the capacity to rise about the ugliness of this entropically destructive moment, and syntropically catapult a more awakened potential.

As I shared within this months Flourish Women’s Circle— When the Grandmothers speak, the Earth with Heal—Hopi prophecy. And within that vein of feeling, I also believe that when we speak through the intelligence of our Hearts, we transcend the confines of materialistic science & space/time. We have the capacity to make quantum leaps in our collective consciousness.

As they say, necessity is the mother of invention— may the Great Mother hear our voices and guide the way.

This Article is also published on Simone’s Radiantly Human on Substack.