Bart Selman on the Promises and Perils of Artificial Intelligence

Bart Selman, Professor of Computer Science at Cornell University, joins us to discuss a wide range of AI issues, from autonomous weapons and AI consciousness to international governance and the possibilities of superintelligence.

Topics discussed in this episode include:

-Negative and positive outcomes from AI in the short, medium, and long-terms
-The perils and promises of AGI and superintelligence
-AI alignment and AI existential risk
-Lethal autonomous weapons
-AI governance and racing to powerful AI systems
-AI consciousness

You can find the page for this podcast here: https://futureoflife.org/2021/05/20/bart-selman-on-the-promises-and-perils-of-artificial-intelligence/

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Timestamps: 

0:00 Intro 
1:35 Futures that Bart is excited about                  
4:08 Positive futures in the short, medium, and long-terms
7:23 AGI timelines 
8:11 Bart’s research on “planning” through the game of Sokoban
13:10 If we don’t go extinct, is the creation of AGI and superintelligence inevitable? 
15:28 What’s exciting about futures with AGI and superintelligence? 
17:10 How long does it take for superintelligence to arise after AGI? 
21:08 Would a superintelligence have something intelligent to say about income inequality? 
23:24 Are there true or false answers to moral questions? 
25:30 Can AGI and superintelligence assist with moral and philosophical issues?
28:07 Do you think superintelligences converge on ethics? 
29:32 Are you most excited about the short or long-term benefits of AI? 
34:30 Is existential risk from AI a legitimate threat? 
35:22 Is the AI alignment problem legitimate? 
43:29 What are futures that you fear? 
46:24 Do social media algorithms represent an instance of the alignment problem? 
51:46 The importance of educating the public on AI 
55:00 Income inequality, cyber security, and negative futures 
1:00:06 Lethal autonomous weapons 
1:01:50 Negative futures in the long-term 
1:03:26 How have your views of AI alignment evolved? 
1:06:53 Bart’s plans and intentions for the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence
1:13:45 Policy recommendations for existing AIs and the AI ecosystem 
1:15:35 Solving the parts of the AI alignment that won’t be solved by industry incentives 
1:18:17 Narratives of an international race to powerful AI systems 
1:20:42 How does an international race to AI affect the chances of successful AI alignment? 
1:23:20 Is AI a zero sum game? 
1:28:51 Lethal autonomous weapons governance 
1:31:38 Does the governance of autonomous weapons affect outcomes from AGI 
1:33:00 AI consciousness 
1:39:37 Alignment is important and the benefits of AI can be great

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