which can be constructed faster: a provably-safe-by-design friendly AGI, or a fail-safe not-proven-friendly tool AI?
Mark, I get that it’s terrible that people are dying. As pointed out in another thread, I support SENS. But there’s a disaster response tool called “Don’t just do something, stand there!”, which argues that taking the time to make sure you do the right thing is worth it, especially in emergencies, when there is pressure to act too soon. Mistakes made because you were in a hurry aren’t any less damaging because you were in a hurry for a good reason.
I don’t think anyone expects that it’s possible and desirable to slow down general tech development, and most tool AI is just software development. If I write software that helps engineers run their tools more effectively, or a colleague writes software that helps doctors target radiation at tumors more effectively, or another colleague writes software that helps planners decide which reservoirs to drain for electrical power, that doesn’t make a huge change to the trajectory of the future; each is just a small improvement towards more embedded intelligence and richer, longer lives.
Mark, I get that it’s terrible that people are dying. As pointed out in another thread, I support SENS. But there’s a disaster response tool called “Don’t just do something, stand there!”, which argues that taking the time to make sure you do the right thing is worth it, especially in emergencies, when there is pressure to act too soon. Mistakes made because you were in a hurry aren’t any less damaging because you were in a hurry for a good reason.
I don’t think anyone expects that it’s possible and desirable to slow down general tech development, and most tool AI is just software development. If I write software that helps engineers run their tools more effectively, or a colleague writes software that helps doctors target radiation at tumors more effectively, or another colleague writes software that helps planners decide which reservoirs to drain for electrical power, that doesn’t make a huge change to the trajectory of the future; each is just a small improvement towards more embedded intelligence and richer, longer lives.