‹ BackHN Continuity

Thread

AI companies in race to demonstrate their model most threatening to humanity

441 points · 399 comments · ljewalsh

  1. chasd00 · · focus · HN ↗
    I’ve never seen CEOs work so hard to make the public aware of how dangerous and out of control their flagship product is. It makes me automatically assume they’re scheming about something else like regulatory capture to protect their market.
    1. hellweaver666 · · focus · HN ↗
      I have a theory... the call to slow down is not because of the true danger of LLM's but because they can't actually deliver the General AI they're promising in the near future. They will use their "caution" to justify their failure to deliver (and then when this excuse is played out they will blame regulation, energy costs or a million other things).
      1. mofeien · · focus · HN ↗
        When, in the past three years, has model progress seemed to decelerate to you, indicating some limit?

        The Statement on AI Extinction Risk is more than three years old, signed by the three CEOs: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;aistatement.com&#x2F;work&#x2F;statement-on-ai-extinction-risk" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;aistatement.com&#x2F;work&#x2F;statement-on-ai-extinction-risk

        They have been warning about AI extinction risk for years, and AI progress has only been accelerating.

        1. palmotea · · focus · HN ↗
          &gt; They have been warning about AI extinction risk for years, and AI progress has only been accelerating.

          So, they&#x27;re either liars or homicidally reckless.

          1. DirkH · · focus · HN ↗
            Look up the nuclear arms race. We brought humanity to very possibly a 25% exstinction risk by some well argued for accounts I have read. That is insanity. When you learn about how insane nuclear proliferation was including actual projects like Project Sundial that the US actually started construction on until the Joint Chiefs revolted against it (and they didn&#x27;t even revolt against it on moral grounds, just on strategic ground) it becomes even more batshit insane.

            There were nuclear researchers who did not pay into their retirement fund since they thought it was kinda high chance humanity extinction was happening in their lifetime during the heyday of nuclear proliferation. We are seeing the same play out in AI. I know at least one AI researcher who is not paying into their retirement fund.

            Never ascribe to malice that can easily be explained by game theory tragedy of the commons or prisoner dilemma type dynamics. Race dynamics and systems theory is one helluva drug and leads to horrific outcomes all the time without the need to ascribe malice to any individual actor.

Open on Hacker News to reply ↗

Unofficial Hacker News client; not affiliated with Y Combinator.