“When you create more possibilities, you also create more possibilities for things to go wrong.” — Stephen Hawking
There is no agreed definition on Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI is the creation of computers, robots or software to think and behave/function like humans. It is the science of making things smart. On the other hand, humans endowed with Natural Intelligence (NI) respond naturally to circumstances/activities around them. Examples of AI are the manufacture of robots, self-driven cars, smart assistants, healthcare management, automated financial investing, virtual travel booking agent, social media monitoring, marketing chat bots etc. AI which is a creation of man requires electricity and periodic maintenance for its functioning. It cannot perform any function beyond what it has been programmed for. Human intelligence is a creation of God and a free gift to us. It requires neither electricity nor maintenance. Humans constantly learn, adapt and change to survive in our ever changing world. Natural Intelligence (NI) is full of emotions. It understands a situation and acts accordingly. It is creative and keeps doing new and different things all the time. It can explore – ask questions – be open to new ideas and ways of working as well as undertake correction and change course. It is capable of empathy, a quality necessary to connect well with people and build meaningful relationships.
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In recent years, AI has woven itself into our daily lives in ways we may not even be aware of. It has become so pervasive that many are unaware of its impact and our reliance upon it, from morning to night, going about our everyday routine. AI technology drives much of what we do. When we wake up at the break of day, many of us reach our mobile phones or laptop to start our day. Doing so has become automatic, and integral to how we function in terms of our decision making, planning and information seeking.
The use of AI will affect every segment/area of human life including inter-personal relations and how will man/woman; father/mother and parents/children relate to each other? The use of AI and robotics may emerge as a frightful disruptor of our social life. AI has now become so ingrained in our everyday lives that it’s difficult to comprehend life without it.
Humans are the ones who create and design AI systems. We are still a long way from considering AI as an existential threat. But we cannot deny that AI is getting smarter each day. Before we awaken the potent power of Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) we must understand its profound implications. It should not be the story of ‘Midas Touch’. He touched his daughter and she turned into gold. He touched his food and his food turned into gold. There was no way he could reverse any of his actions. What happens when computers get smarter than we are?
In December 2014: Stephen Hawking warned that AI would end mankind. He said “Humans who are limited by slow biological evolution could never compete and would be superseded.” Elon Musk has warned that “AI is our biggest existential threat.” Let us not be over confident. We must anticipate threat and plan for it. AI needs to be put into a box where it cannot escape and should it escape the control button should be in the hand of mankind. The AI should have our values and do things that we approve of which would always be actions that would be good for humanity. The problem is that we as humans are often at loggerheads with each other and we cannot agree on what ought to be our values. What then can we teach AI?
Our motto should be ‘Super Intelligence that is safe for humanity.’ We need to anticipate and work out the solutions in advance to enable a seamless transition into the age of machines which may be universally used as we use smart phones today. When people look back at our century they should be able to say “Well, the one thing that we did that really mattered was to get things right”. Alignment and safety has always mattered and the speed at which AI is marching ahead, is a matter of concern. Presently we are forging ahead without proper safeguards due to corporate rivalry and geopolitics. The saving grace is that there are a significant number of researchers thinking about how to keep AI safe and in check.
AI promises to create mind boggling wealth the world has not seen in centuries gone by. The question remains ‘Wealth for whom?’ In the absence of equitable distribution, the creation of wealth is socially meaningless and is just a sham. In the light of arguments above is AI our friend or foe? Is it an opportunity or threat to the human race? Does AI help to uplift every man, woman and child in this world?
The idea of man becoming a victim of his own creation is well known in many cultures. The theme has been picked up by story tellers and retold many times in novels and films –Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Monster for example. Is AI today’s Tower of Babel, another project of humanity waiting to falter and fall? AI seeks glory for itself instead of God. It is a quest for independence from God. People would rather trust the creations of their own hands than trust the creator. It is only a matter of time when AI will take off on its own, and redesign itself at an exponential and incredible rate. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, wouldn’t be able to compete and would be superseded. We are talking of the future of our species.
Humans are integrated beings – spirit, soul and body. Mankind is the image-bearer of God. The most distinctive feature of man is that he/she has been created in the image of God. This presumption not only asserts the existence of God but also validates that people as bearers’ of God’s image. The natural order therefore should be: God-Creator-Man-Creatures.
The 21st century tech revolution is transforming lives across the globe. From times immemorial, Humans have tried to defy death and have always longed to gain immortality. In order to make this dream a reality you have the Aloor Life Extension Foundation in Arizona, USA where dead bodies which have been frozen are referred to as ‘patients’ by the medical staff in the hope that on the aftermath of them thawing, it will result in their physiological resurrection! It is becoming clearer that one of the aim/objectives of AI is to enable humankind to reach a stage of immortality.
The transformative impact of AI on our society will have far reaching economic, legal, political and regulatory implications that we need to discuss and prepare for. Determining who is at fault if an autonomous vehicle hurts a pedestrian or how to manage a global autonomous arms race are just a few exam0les of the challenges to be faced. Will machines become super-intelligent and will humans eventually lose control?
(The writer is a social scientist and a senior practicing criminal lawyer)
