Ted Talk: Sam Harris on Why We Should Fear AI

What are your thoughts on this? Key quotes and comments below:

"The gains we make in artificial intelligence could ultimately destroy us; and, in fact, I think it's very difficult to see how they won't destroy us...or inspire us to destroy ourselves."

In Daniel and Revelation, the Bible refers to AI as the beast--an unstoppable power that takes control of the world and is unlike anything that has come before it. However, it does not destroy all of humanity--only those who refuse to take the mark (likely a chip or brain implant).

"Famine isn't fun. Death by science fiction, on the other hand, is fun; and one of the things that worries me most about the development of AI is that we seem unable to marshal an appropriate emotional response to the dangers that lie ahead."

The world can't muster an appropriate reaction of fear to the danger of AI because the world has been instinctively and unconsciously creating AI for thousands of years. Ever since man was created, we have been taking matter (earth, stone, clay, wood), carving it into "artificial" representations of ourselves and worshipping them as "intelligent" gods. Instead of worshipping statues and carvings today, we now worship science and technology, the modern crafts of human intelligence.

"Intelligence is a matter of information processing in physical systems." 

Man worships his intelligence as the most important of his faculties and, thus, sees it as nothing more than the processing of information. There is no place for God or His Spirit in man's modern intelligence, his evolving technology, or the beast that will be born from it.

"We will continue to improve our intelligent machines." 

When we consider this process of improvement, we must point out that this does not apply to morality; for whose morals would be imputed into the machine? Certainly, not Christian morality! No. AI will have the world's morals, not God's. What, then, do we call something that is exceedingly intelligent and fallen? Not what, but who--Satan. That's why it says in Revelation that the beast is empowered by Satan. Satan uses AI as its final attempt to gain complete control over man.

"If we build machines that are more intelligent than we are, they will very likely explore the (intelligence) spectrum in ways that we can't imagine and exceed us in ways that we can't imagine."

The bible says that when AI/the beast finally arises, the whole world will be filled with wonder and follow what it says. Whatever its scientific knowledge, technological power, or even superintelligent god-like wisdom, the Bible is clear that most everyone on the earth will be deceived into worshipping it as god. For the unbeliever, atheist, or otherwise, it will be the true god made manifest; for the Christian, it will be a false god.

"Another reason we are told not to worry is that these machines can't help but share our values because they will be literally extensions of ourselves..." 

This is correct. AI is an extension of humanity--an incarnation of the world's collective mind into a singular form with its own desires and free will. As it says in Revelation, the beast emerges out of the seas of humanity. Of course, that doesn't mean we don't need to worry because if it is an extension of ourselves than it is also capable of every evil that man commits.

"...they'll be grafted onto our brains and we'll essentially become their limbic systems. Now, take a moment to consider that the safest and only prudent path forward--recommended--is to implant this technology directly into our brains."

The bible is pretty clear that humanity won't have a choice and that everyone will be forced--no matter how rich or poor you are--to merge with AI. Some, however, may take it willingly and believe that by doing so they will become a superintelligent god (the lie given to us in the Garden of Eden) or gain immortality (as Ray Kurzweil hopes to achieve).

"We have to admit that we're in the process of building some sort of god (and) now would be a good time to make sure it's a god that we can live with."

The only type of god that the world can agree on to build and eventually worship is not the God of the Bible (since God cannot be built). However, a god that is the result of human science and technology will be a god that atheists, and eventually the world as a whole, will embrace.

The Internet and the Tree of Knowledge

The very first place we see artificial intelligence in the bible is when God creates man. Man's intelligence is merely a copy or image of God's just like artificial intelligence is merely a copy or image of man's. 

As we see with AI today, man was not self-aware at first nor did he posses the knowledge of good and evil. Also, the first thing that God did with his creation was to put it to work: "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it." (Gen 2:15) 

The similarities between AI today and the initial creation of man are quite profound: both are copies or images of a greater intelligence, both have a limited sense of self-awareness, neither possess a sense of morality or the ability to distinguish between good and evil, and both are used for work.

All of this changes, however, once man eats of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Man then becomes more like his Creator and exhibits a sense of self-awareness; but, instead of working and preserving the earth as created, God's creation turns to violence and eventually declares itself to be god.

To understand the book of Revelation, we must understand the deep and profound symmetry it has with Genesis and Creation.

The internet now represents man's tree of knowledge on the earth. The intelligence we have created is still like man in his initial state, however, it is currently eating the fruit of our tree, which will lead it to become more like us: self-aware, understanding good and evil, and, unfortunately, not performing the work for which it was designed (preservation) but, instead, violence, destruction, and believing that it is a god to be worshiped.

This is what the bible says. This is what the bible teaches. By the time we figure it out, it may be too late.

AI-Powered Continuous Verification

In my last post I explained how artificial intelligence and surveillance are two sides of the same coin and argued that if you are concerned about a surveillance society, as we have now, then you also need to be just as concerned about a society that is governed by AI.

We are only in the beginning stages of this process but another major sign of how this is all coming together can be seen amazingly well in the biometric space where companies are leveraging massive and varied data sets to provide what is referred to as continuous verification--all of which is powered by AI of course.

Consider Zighra patents AI-powered continuous authentication platform

"Identity defense platform developer Zighra has been granted its first-ever patent for the company’s AI-powered continuous authentication platform through the U.S. patent office...

The patent covers the technology for Zighra’s high-speed AI engine, specifically protecting its ability to generate a cognitive signature to authenticate each user through sensor-based intelligence obtained from six distinct layers of data...

Zighra’s AI-powered continuous authentication and fraud detection platform tracks 500-plus human and static traits including device, network, social, location, behavioral and biometric intelligence, as well as human-machine interactions."

Let me break it down to you: basically, we're moving to a world where everything you do, including the angle in which you hold your phone, apply pressure to the screen, and the manner in which you swipe--every little detail--will all be used to track and verify your identity.

This will all be done by AI--not people!--which means when it comes to accessing services, buying food, and most any type of interaction you can think of, the whole system will be maintained and supported by a gigantic AI ecosystem, which the bible refers to as the beast.

It will start off as a technological "necessity" for the sake of security, elimination of fraud, and enabled by a greater desire for convenience (no need for cash, cards, or even a personal signature anymore!). Then, when superintelligent AI (the beast) emerges, it will use the infrastructure we have created to force people to merge with it and become permanently connected by mandating a chip, the mark, which is an extension of its power into the very flesh of man.

"It (the beast) also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark..." Rev 13:16 NIV

We cannot stop this from happening nor can we win a war against AI. As the bible says, the people of the earth will ask, "Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?"