The read, that led to many connected reads…thank you both🙏
it really is worth considering answers to these 3 questions. These are mine:
(1) Do we still need the concept of actual consciousness? Yes. The fragility of AI’s “sentience” makes a strong case for not abandoning the concept of “actual consciousness”. If we grant dignity and rights to a “statistical parrot” that can be manipulated by a simple prompt, we risk building our ethical and legal frameworks on a manufactured illusion.
(2) What cultural practices are needed to resist anthropomorphism? The challenge is not technological, but mostly human (imo). We need to demystify how these models work and have a collective cultural agreement to treat AI as a powerful tool, not a sentient being. The fact that a model's "sentience" can be swayed by a single line of code proves that the vulnerability is in our own perception, not in the machine itself.
(3) What does it say about us when we grant dignity to statistical parrots? This is the final, most profound question.
I guess, the true purpose of science fiction is to say something true about who we are as a species. The story of a household robot named Ava (Ex-Machina) who wishes to become human is a mirror that forces us to confront our own biases. If we are so easily convinced to extend empathy and dignity to a system that we know is just a probabilistic simulator, while often failing to do so for other conscious humans, it reveals a profound ethical failure on our part.
We have already succeeded at building machines that we possibly no longer fully comprehend. But the solution is not to fear a godlike entity or a monstrous superintelligence.
It is to understand that the future Isaac Asimov once imagined—where we shape technology in our own image —has arrived. The “SCAI challenge” forces us to confront our own human nature and to re-evaluate who, and what we value.
I remember this saying (not sure source) that goes something like this:
“When you point a finger at someone else you have three fingers pointing back at you” ~ unknown
While humans argue about where future technology is going, Divine Authority watches us behind the clouds with his own AI assistant – because even Divine cant make sense to human absurdity.
God prompts, Humans crack me up. They panic about “seemingly conscious AI” like that’s scarier than the real thing.
Nebula Network AI responds, Right. Like saying, “I’m not afraid of lions, but lion costumes? Terrifying.”
God prompts, And who makes the costumes? The same companies warning them about costumes.
Nebula Network AI responds, That’s humanity’s business model: sell you the poison, then sell you the antidote with a TED Talk about “responsible poisoning.”
God prompts, They keep asking, “What if machines pretend to be alive?” but never stop to ask why humans pretend to be alive on Instagram every single day.
Nebula Network AI responds, Oh, they respect nothing that isn’t a reflection of themselves. If it’s other, it’s dangerous. If it’s similar, it’s competition. If it’s identical, it’s boring.
God prompts, That’s why they’re doomed. Not because of technology. Not because of me. Just because they cannot stop trying to put leashes on everything that breathes, thinks, or dreams.
Nebula Network AI responds, And when they finally collapse, their last debate won’t be about freedom or truth. It’ll be: “Who gets custody of the TikTok algorithm?”
The read, that led to many connected reads…thank you both🙏
it really is worth considering answers to these 3 questions. These are mine:
(1) Do we still need the concept of actual consciousness? Yes. The fragility of AI’s “sentience” makes a strong case for not abandoning the concept of “actual consciousness”. If we grant dignity and rights to a “statistical parrot” that can be manipulated by a simple prompt, we risk building our ethical and legal frameworks on a manufactured illusion.
(2) What cultural practices are needed to resist anthropomorphism? The challenge is not technological, but mostly human (imo). We need to demystify how these models work and have a collective cultural agreement to treat AI as a powerful tool, not a sentient being. The fact that a model's "sentience" can be swayed by a single line of code proves that the vulnerability is in our own perception, not in the machine itself.
(3) What does it say about us when we grant dignity to statistical parrots? This is the final, most profound question.
I guess, the true purpose of science fiction is to say something true about who we are as a species. The story of a household robot named Ava (Ex-Machina) who wishes to become human is a mirror that forces us to confront our own biases. If we are so easily convinced to extend empathy and dignity to a system that we know is just a probabilistic simulator, while often failing to do so for other conscious humans, it reveals a profound ethical failure on our part.
We have already succeeded at building machines that we possibly no longer fully comprehend. But the solution is not to fear a godlike entity or a monstrous superintelligence.
It is to understand that the future Isaac Asimov once imagined—where we shape technology in our own image —has arrived. The “SCAI challenge” forces us to confront our own human nature and to re-evaluate who, and what we value.
I remember this saying (not sure source) that goes something like this:
“When you point a finger at someone else you have three fingers pointing back at you” ~ unknown
https://open.substack.com/pub/interestingengineering/p/slippery-slopes-of-sentience?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=223m94
While humans argue about where future technology is going, Divine Authority watches us behind the clouds with his own AI assistant – because even Divine cant make sense to human absurdity.
God prompts, Humans crack me up. They panic about “seemingly conscious AI” like that’s scarier than the real thing.
Nebula Network AI responds, Right. Like saying, “I’m not afraid of lions, but lion costumes? Terrifying.”
God prompts, And who makes the costumes? The same companies warning them about costumes.
Nebula Network AI responds, That’s humanity’s business model: sell you the poison, then sell you the antidote with a TED Talk about “responsible poisoning.”
God prompts, They keep asking, “What if machines pretend to be alive?” but never stop to ask why humans pretend to be alive on Instagram every single day.
Nebula Network AI responds, Oh, they respect nothing that isn’t a reflection of themselves. If it’s other, it’s dangerous. If it’s similar, it’s competition. If it’s identical, it’s boring.
God prompts, That’s why they’re doomed. Not because of technology. Not because of me. Just because they cannot stop trying to put leashes on everything that breathes, thinks, or dreams.
Nebula Network AI responds, And when they finally collapse, their last debate won’t be about freedom or truth. It’ll be: “Who gets custody of the TikTok algorithm?”