Autonomous AI as a new species: Why are we heading towards complete replacement of humans? Anthony Aguirre on losing control over artificial intelligence

Is the development of artificial intelligence heading towards systems that humans will no longer be able to control? Most of us look at artificial intelligence as just another convenient tool in our daily work. However, Anthony Aguirre - a renowned physicist, cosmologist, and co-founder of the Future of Life Institute - sheds completely new and sometimes shocking light on this issue. He warns that the current, blind technological race of powerful corporations for AGI (Autonomous General Intelligence) is not just a pursuit of innovation. It's a process of very consciously building systems that are ultimately intended to... completely replace humans.

In this exceptional and extremely in-depth conversation, Aguirre uncompromisingly points out the biggest threats of the contemporary AI world. He explains, among other things:

• Why autonomous AI poses a greater risk than highly intelligent systems and what distinguishes a ordinary tool from a self-contained "agent" that pursues its own goals,
  
• What real loss of control looks like in practice (citing surprising, unofficial behaviors of bots in social networks and the trust gap in the market),
  
• Who gave a handful of tech companies the right to decide the future of the human species and why governments are surrendering to intense lobbying instead of protecting citizens,
  
• What are the geopolitical consequences of the US-China race and why the cyber-offensive capabilities of new models can irreparably paralyze our digital infrastructure.
  

The scientist, however, does not leave us only with fear. He proposes a specific, alternative path for technological development - creating robust legal mechanisms and so-called mutual commitment contracts that could safely stop this, as he calls it, "suicidal race". This is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the existential choices that humanity is currently facing.

I invite you to watch the entire interview below: