The Age of Artificial Intelligence // the dawn of “Alien Intelligences” — TAD talk
Here is a summary of the key points from the talk:
- The speaker argues we should develop AI systems with perspectives and values very different from humans, which he calls “alien intelligences”.
- Rather than AI that mimics or exceeds human intelligence, we need AI to provoke new thinking and solutions to humanity’s biggest challenges.
- Diverse perspectives, whether in groups of humans or between humans and AIs, leads to more innovative ideas. The speaker’s research shows the most impactful scientific advances come from combining surprising perspectives.
- Alien intelligences can push human thinking into new areas and valleys between disciplines. The speaker gives an example of using AI to generate new materials by bridging gaps between fields.
- Cultivating a diversity of AI systems, like an ecology, can provide checks and balances rather than relying on a single “best” AI.
- Alien intelligences paired with human intelligence can expand creativity and imagination to tackle humanity’s biggest problems like climate change and inequality.
The key ideas are using AI systems with very different perspectives from humans to spur breakthrough thinking, and promoting diverse AI systems to stimulate innovation and provide oversight over any one system.
