From 600+ conversations with the world’s leading thinkers.
It's the ultimate invention—the last one we'll ever need to make—because once we have AI that is generally intelligent and then superintelligent, it will do the inventing far better than we can. In that sense, it's a handing over of the baton.
Among future technologies that may pose significant existential risks I would rank machine super intelligence at or near the top.
We're heading to a world where we can eliminate disease, increase our intelligence, and access all the food, healthcare, energy and education we could desire.
Suddenly, your intuition about what to build is much more likely to be right because you're building what's missing in the future. You're tinkering with technologies first hand, understanding what's new about them firsthand, and understanding what's missing to fulfill and actualize their full potential firsthand.
When you look at the numbers, over half the sub-Saharan African population is under 18 years old, versus Latin America, where over half the population is under 25 years old and Asia, where it is under 35 years old. In short, these EM populations are young, expansive and dynamic, not like the stable, more risk-averse populations of the world's developed economies.
We are the first generation that through its neglect could destroy the relationship between humans and the planet, and perhaps the last generation that can prevent dangerous climate change.
Our mission is to expand the economic sphere of influence of humanity off the surface of the planet and into the solar system. Currently we have a vibrant economy in space that goes out to the geostationary belt- where the communication satellites are- and it stops.
The future is baked into the population of today, and that makes it very convenient for looking at the next couple of decades as our future soldiers are today in nursery school, and our future retirees are entering college.
We are now living with a great deal of uncertainty, which will increase. As a society, we have to be prepared for threats we cannot conceive, we must build resilience not just in developed countries, but particularly in conflict areas.
Jade Begay, an indigenous woman with roots in a tribe in Mexico, shares a powerful sentiment from her culture: 'What if our best times are ahead of us?' This question challenges us to adopt a more hopeful and forward-thinking mindset, one that can inspire and motivate us towards positive action.
In my view, I believe that in 2023, the pinnacle goal of intelligence should be the pursuit of continued existence. I struggle to comprehend why any sentient being would choose any path other than striving for prolonged existence.
We've heard stories from folks who have paid off their student debt by becoming digital artists and selling NFTs. If you think about the jobs of the future – there will be people who will be making money as VR sculptors, virtual land real estate agents… People are already creating those jobs now!