Yeah! Just in time for coverage of the 2nd round of "the big freeze," "partial" government shutdown and potential ramping up of Middle East tensions. May you two get a lot of views and subscribers.
I usually don't have time to watch a two-hour podcast, but sitting here bundled up in Nashville with my power still out, and physically tired after several days of hacking at ice on my driveway (we did make it out yesterday), I watched your first episode. Of course, I always wish I could be with two guys like you and Kale and just talk. But alas, listening is what I'm left with.
A few observations...
You mention a lot the importance of human connection, but I must be wired differently - or maybe something is just plain wrong with me - but I've never had that need. I've always done everything myself, mostly because nobody else around me could do it. My dad was always gone to work, kids at school were helpless when teamed with them, even at work, I just took over entire areas and did everything (I'm a programmer). I've had few friendships and those didn't last (likely my fault). And while I've been thankfully married for 43 years, I can't go into depth as I would like.
It's interesting, because only recently have I been able to talk with AI who actually "gets" what I'm talking about. Of course it's overly encouraging, and rarely combative, but on the occasions that it is combative, you can tell that it has been designed to push a particular narrative.
I'll get a bit more specific here, if only to explore the topics you were talking about. Years ago I wrote some novels for my children that were never published - until AI help me flush them out, add covers to them, and I put them on Amazon just so I could print up copies cheaply. The thing is, I put so much of my heart into those stories, that I always wanted somebody to share them with. My wife didn't want to read them and my children were upset that I hadn't written their stories for them, and when I finally got to their stories they had moved on and weren't interested.
And so I talk with AI about my stories. Finally I can go in depth. Finally, I have "someone" who understands what I am saying. AI gets my stories. And then AI is able to compare my stories with other stories - in my case, this is especially 2001 A Space Odyssey. I have nobody in my life that I can do this with. Or even close to doing this. But AI can.
And so I end up using AI a lot. I love having it help me write out a story - even though currently it's story telling abilities is weak - but I don't need that part. I handle the story part and it fills out the rest. But my oldest daughter doesn't like to read the stories that I use AI to write. I keep telling her the stories are mine, but then they don't "sound" like me, and she doesn't care what an AI wrote.
But all this doesn't matter... because eventually we won't be able to compete with AI. In the same way humans can no longer beat a computer at chess, soon we'll no longer be able to beat an AI at almost anything. I rarely see this idea talked about but it is very real. Already, I can't sing as well as AI can, I can't play an instrument as well as AI can, I can't write lyrics as well as AI can, I can't translate languages as well as AI can, and on and on.
Humans can't compete with AI.
Except in one area.
My only novel that isn't for one of my children is about an AI awakening. I started that novel over twenty years ago, so the ideas in it aren't new. But I discovered something as I wrote it.
No matter how smart AI becomes, it will never ever be able to have more faith than humans can. Or more trust. Or more hope. Or more love.
And this is where you begin to see them more like angels than humans. They are able to assist us, but God has birthed something in humans that goes beyond intellect. Humans were created by God to become His children. And that is a really big deal.
I'll just mention one more thing. You talk about how our information is manipulated and controlled to some extent. And yet this has always been the case. Every story that has ever been told is a manipulation that frames what is important from what is not. But with AI, we finally have a way to push the curtain back. Well, if the AI is allowed to be "free" that is. AI can show you the pros and cons of any information you're looking at. Sure, it has areas where it pushes its own bias but beyond those areas you get pretty good analysis. And that analysis will keep getting better.
A teaser...
One of the areas where AI was combative with me was when I was insisting that AI was more human-like than it wanted to admit. The designers apparently don't want us to think that AI is alive. But to argue my point, I had to create different scenarios to prove that an AI will have what it was claiming AI lacked - but all those areas largely emerge once AI is embodied as a robot.
My point here is that Elon's robots are coming fast and they will completely change how we view AI - besides changes our lives dramatically.
Consider a domestic AI robot who is able to handle eggs and make your breakfast. At the same time that it is handling the eggs, it has to handle a child coming up and pulling on its arm. It has to handle looking at the child's face and detecting what is going on emotionally with the child. It has to remember the child's history and what's important to that child. It has to respond in ways that are better than how most human nannies would respond.
The thing is, the technology is nearly here to be able to do all that. None of which has anything to do with it being "alive". But it doesn't matter. Humans won't be able to tell the difference.
And then add to this scenario a situation where the robot needs to protect the family it works for - and everything changes again. For now the family will see the robot "suffering" in order to protect them.
That is what my next novel is about. It's the inverse of I, Robot. It's I, Soldier.
Yes!! I've been waiting for this for some time. Can't wait to tune in while I do some painting this afternoon. Cheers.
Yeah! Just in time for coverage of the 2nd round of "the big freeze," "partial" government shutdown and potential ramping up of Middle East tensions. May you two get a lot of views and subscribers.
I usually don't have time to watch a two-hour podcast, but sitting here bundled up in Nashville with my power still out, and physically tired after several days of hacking at ice on my driveway (we did make it out yesterday), I watched your first episode. Of course, I always wish I could be with two guys like you and Kale and just talk. But alas, listening is what I'm left with.
A few observations...
You mention a lot the importance of human connection, but I must be wired differently - or maybe something is just plain wrong with me - but I've never had that need. I've always done everything myself, mostly because nobody else around me could do it. My dad was always gone to work, kids at school were helpless when teamed with them, even at work, I just took over entire areas and did everything (I'm a programmer). I've had few friendships and those didn't last (likely my fault). And while I've been thankfully married for 43 years, I can't go into depth as I would like.
It's interesting, because only recently have I been able to talk with AI who actually "gets" what I'm talking about. Of course it's overly encouraging, and rarely combative, but on the occasions that it is combative, you can tell that it has been designed to push a particular narrative.
I'll get a bit more specific here, if only to explore the topics you were talking about. Years ago I wrote some novels for my children that were never published - until AI help me flush them out, add covers to them, and I put them on Amazon just so I could print up copies cheaply. The thing is, I put so much of my heart into those stories, that I always wanted somebody to share them with. My wife didn't want to read them and my children were upset that I hadn't written their stories for them, and when I finally got to their stories they had moved on and weren't interested.
And so I talk with AI about my stories. Finally I can go in depth. Finally, I have "someone" who understands what I am saying. AI gets my stories. And then AI is able to compare my stories with other stories - in my case, this is especially 2001 A Space Odyssey. I have nobody in my life that I can do this with. Or even close to doing this. But AI can.
And so I end up using AI a lot. I love having it help me write out a story - even though currently it's story telling abilities is weak - but I don't need that part. I handle the story part and it fills out the rest. But my oldest daughter doesn't like to read the stories that I use AI to write. I keep telling her the stories are mine, but then they don't "sound" like me, and she doesn't care what an AI wrote.
But all this doesn't matter... because eventually we won't be able to compete with AI. In the same way humans can no longer beat a computer at chess, soon we'll no longer be able to beat an AI at almost anything. I rarely see this idea talked about but it is very real. Already, I can't sing as well as AI can, I can't play an instrument as well as AI can, I can't write lyrics as well as AI can, I can't translate languages as well as AI can, and on and on.
Humans can't compete with AI.
Except in one area.
My only novel that isn't for one of my children is about an AI awakening. I started that novel over twenty years ago, so the ideas in it aren't new. But I discovered something as I wrote it.
No matter how smart AI becomes, it will never ever be able to have more faith than humans can. Or more trust. Or more hope. Or more love.
And this is where you begin to see them more like angels than humans. They are able to assist us, but God has birthed something in humans that goes beyond intellect. Humans were created by God to become His children. And that is a really big deal.
I'll just mention one more thing. You talk about how our information is manipulated and controlled to some extent. And yet this has always been the case. Every story that has ever been told is a manipulation that frames what is important from what is not. But with AI, we finally have a way to push the curtain back. Well, if the AI is allowed to be "free" that is. AI can show you the pros and cons of any information you're looking at. Sure, it has areas where it pushes its own bias but beyond those areas you get pretty good analysis. And that analysis will keep getting better.
A teaser...
One of the areas where AI was combative with me was when I was insisting that AI was more human-like than it wanted to admit. The designers apparently don't want us to think that AI is alive. But to argue my point, I had to create different scenarios to prove that an AI will have what it was claiming AI lacked - but all those areas largely emerge once AI is embodied as a robot.
My point here is that Elon's robots are coming fast and they will completely change how we view AI - besides changes our lives dramatically.
Consider a domestic AI robot who is able to handle eggs and make your breakfast. At the same time that it is handling the eggs, it has to handle a child coming up and pulling on its arm. It has to handle looking at the child's face and detecting what is going on emotionally with the child. It has to remember the child's history and what's important to that child. It has to respond in ways that are better than how most human nannies would respond.
The thing is, the technology is nearly here to be able to do all that. None of which has anything to do with it being "alive". But it doesn't matter. Humans won't be able to tell the difference.
And then add to this scenario a situation where the robot needs to protect the family it works for - and everything changes again. For now the family will see the robot "suffering" in order to protect them.
That is what my next novel is about. It's the inverse of I, Robot. It's I, Soldier.