Replying to Avatar Mike Brock

I think we don't know what we don't know. It's not hard to imagine scenarios why which AI could be weaponized in a winner-take-all scenario.

I've noticed some in this corner of the internet tend to take the point of view that decentralized protocols are the ultimate defense against these downsides, and I find that disturbingly naive. I do not share the view that the nation state is now effectively obsolete and we should accede to purely bottoms up, decentralized and communitarian approaches to such an asymmetric threat.

I tend to take the point of view that the dangers will very much manifest in the physical realm, and sometime in the next decade or two, we will likely touch the fire. The question is whether we will be able to put that fire out or not. I don't know how to quantify the risks there.
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pam 2y ago

Re decentralised, I think there needs to be an allowance for it to grow, room for mistakes and hopefully it matures up as an ecosystem. Just like how democracy has taken 2000 yrs and still fine tuning. There’s probably no one ideology or protocol that’s fits all but allowing it to happen is a start. On AI, on one hand I wonder how much it impacts long term thinking process on humans. On this other hand, just this morning my friends were sharing how a local startup implemented autonomous (hands free) driving on local cars, forked comma.AI on open source. But we are def at the early stages of machine consciousness.

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Mike Brock 2y ago

To be clear: I think decentralized protocols and a decentralized approach is critical to a positive future, given the risks of concentrated power over information. Don’t get me wrong. I just think the problem can’t be reduced to along a simplistic systemic axis like this. The risks are multivariate, and the potential for harm is theoretically unbounded.

There are externality risks associated with it — I can advertently or inadvertently bring you harm by effects that stem from the technology — whether or not you are party to any transaction or relationship with the creation or use thereof.