Recently, Sam Altman wrote an essay on his blog entitled “The Intelligence Age“. In this essay he ambitiously compares the current AI “revolution” to past technological ages, such as the Industrial and Information Ages, suggesting that AI’s impact could far surpass them.
I created two react videos to this essay – links below.
Part 1 – A Balanced Perspective, Please
In the first video, I recognise AI’s groundbreaking impact on how we work and manage daily tasks. However, I also express skepticism about the prevailing hype surrounding AI, advocating for a balanced perspective that tempers optimism with critical evaluation. Sam Altman’s essay positions us on the verge of what he calls “The Intelligence Age”, a transformative era akin to the Industrial Revolution. While I acknowledge the exciting potential of this shift, I critique the completely optimistic narrative.
For example, Altman claims that we are close to achieving Artificial Superintelligence (ASI). But we haven’t yet reached Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)! We really must be careful when listening to people behind Big Tech.
Part 2 – Machines are Still Just Machines
In the second part of my reaction to Sam Altman’s essay “The Intelligence Age”, I continue my plea for a balanced view to this phenomenon that is AI.
Altman suggests that humanity has created algorithms capable of learning the fundamental rules underlying data distributions, implying a level of machine understanding comparable to human cognition. In response, I discuss the limitations of the technology underlying the current AI revolution that is Deep Learning and talk about its limitations.
As a result, I emphasise the notion that machines operate on the level of knowledge, we operate on the level of knowledge and understanding. Hence, we shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves in this game.
The distinction between knowledge vs understanding is so crucial because it challenges the foundation of Altman’s vision of AI as a transformative force capable of fundamentally reshaping society.
To be informed when new content like this is posted, subscribe to the mailing list (or subscribe to my YouTube channel!):
(Note: If this post is found on a site other than zbigatron.com, a bot has stolen it – it’s been happening a lot lately)
