Why is no-one talking about AI ethics?

Why is no-one talking about AI ethics?

Thorbjørn sent Martin a link. That link was for a company selling computers made of living brain cells. Nowhere does that company talk about the ethics involved here, which is a little bit worrying. Maybe even more than killer robots.

What we talk about

The Anthropic research who said there's more than 10% chance AI will wipe out humans. Is that really going to happen? Well, Thorbjørn gives another of his famed predictions. Let's see if it comes true. Although maybe if it does, we wouldn't know anyway. Gulp. Think about how it would happen and the you end up going in circles, because... surely someone would stop it. So why is someone on the inside saying it out loud? They can't slow down. They're not allowed! Whoever stops first, gets left behind immediately, because the money has got them by the throat. Really, they're hoping someone on the outside steps in. But nobody has.We also chat about how AI sells itself. Things that look good get believed, that's the aesthetic usability effect, and AI writes in a way that feels human, which means... we trust it more than we should. Thorbjørn also brings up The Matrix (and how The Animatrix is better, no arguing please) and says we're somewhere within that world right now. So, who's scared? Martin completely forgets how to form words when the conversation turns to Cortical Labs. They're selling a computer made of living tissue. Lab grown neurons wired to silicon chips, available to anyone. I'll ask again, who's scared?Why does this need to be a thing? The answer is in the episode and although logical, still feels wrong.

Mentioned in this episode

From Hidden By Design

• An earlier episode on the aesthetic usability effect (link missing): never named on air.
• An earlier episode on the brain and power consumption (link missing): same, no title.

Also mentioned

• Geoffrey Hinton: walked away from AI over AI ethics.
• Anthropic: whose researchers keep saying this out loud.
• The BBC report on the 10% kill estimate: where this one started.
• Cortical Labs and the CL1: the lab grown neuron computer.
• The Matrix: the first reference anyone reaches for.
• The Animatrix: rated above the film.

Got a question of your own?

Got a design question or dilemma you're stuck on? Send it to Thorbjørn and Martin through the contact form at hiddenbydesign.net and it might become a future episode.