The issue of whether Artificial Intelligence can gain consciousness is a sensitive topic. Ethics will stand firm, morals and beliefs will be questioned, and even the religious will speak their minds. But it’s not like some of us are avoiding the argument; we are just afraid of what we see in movies where computers and robots defy their creators and come together for world domination.
We’re putting science fiction and the grim imagination of what SkyNet, Ultron, or Agent Smith from The Matrix might do to the human race if they can come close to being real. Instead, we’re tinkering with what we currently have: AI as a mobile butler, a digital assistant, or software that makes our lives easier.
Medium’s Tomas Tulka wrote an interesting article setting aside the idea of machines gaining consciousness and asking a relatively good question: What is it like to be intelligent? We all know that AI can recreate the human brain, thanks to neural networks, but Tulka dove deeper and described intelligence as the ability to make decisions freely.
In other words, we can think. AI can make decisions, yes, but they are limited to what their human counterparts make them.
“Sure, it’s great at things like playing chess or generating text, but it’s not like it understands what it’s doing. In short, today’s AI can’t actually think of itself,” Tulka said.
Conversely, Faculty of Philosophy lecturer and Clare College Research Associate Dr. Tom McClelland pondered the fact that while AI emulates the many processes of the human mind, it can only do so much. It can process complex information, but AI can never process that information consciously.
“It’s one thing to win a game of chess but quite another to feel the excitement of victory,” McClelland explained.
He also added humans should be “agnostic” about the issue of artificial consciousness. But if questions such as giving robots human-like rights or if there is a need to protect the well-being of a supercomputer come into play, then the subject might be considered.
But then again, the idea will just most probably melt away.
So, what gives? AI is a machine. We must draw the line there. One plausible thing that experts can do (for now) is to make AI smarter to help humans do human things faster and more conveniently. Again, we draw the line there.
If you’re watching too many movies, the idea of a T-1000 or an attack drone going on a rampage is out of the question. But if you’re looking forward to a future that’s well within our reach, then AI can make your Smartphones smarter without the risk of self-exploding because you’re using it too much.
