Smarter Artificial Intelligence is coming in the near future, whether we like it or lot. Despite cautionary tales and warnings from Stephen Hawking, AI researchers are working harder than ever. Some of the AI programs will be good, some will be bad — as is life.
With that in mind, former Google executive Mo Gawdat is terrified of the incoming wave of artificial intelligence. After working with Google-funded AI programs in the past, Gawdat is convinced that they're creating God.
Mo Gawdat thinks AI researchers are going too far
Speaking to The Times, Gawdat is said to have “glimpsed the apocalypse” in robot arms. When he worked as the Chief Business Officer for Google X, Gawdat was frightened by the progress of their technology.
At the time, Google X was working on robot arms. The arms were learning how to pick up small objects including “children's toys”. One day, one of the arms allegedly picked up a small yellow ball and showed it off to the camera. The next day, every arm was doing it.
Gawdat told The Times:
“And I suddenly realised, this is really scary. Like, we had those things for weeks. And they are doing what children will take two years to do. And then it hit me that they are children. But very, very fast children. They get smarter so quickly! And if they’re children? And they’re observing us? I’m sorry to say, we suck.”
Before this, Gawdat was very positive about artificial intelligence. In 2009, he saw an AI watch YouTube videos — eventually it got caught watching cat videos. At Google DeepMind, he saw an AI playing Atari games better than anyone. At the time he thought, “We’re going to build amazing things that are going to change even more people’s lives.”
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There's no stopping AI
Despite his fears, Gawdat is confident that hyper intelligent AI is unstoppable. Just like Terminator’s SkyNet, he believes intelligent AI is an inevitable aspect of humanity's future. Furthermore, he believes that “we’re creating God.”
Gawdat believes that AI researchers are building software study the same characteristics as humans. This incudes resourcefulness, autonomous thought and free will — the basis of a consciousness. That's why he believes AI should be treated right, with us as the parents and AI as the child. In fact, he believes that’s integral to “save our world”.
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