The Rise Of The Artilects? (part1)

Quantum Computer CartoonThis is something that falls squarely with in my field of “God that is cool/interesting” Catergory, but before I launch into some meaningful post, I may be helpful to have a bit of background information.

The Concept

Artificial brain designer and theoretical physicist ~Prof. Hugo de Garis raised the issue of whether humanity should build godlike intelligent machines. Because of technological advances, he foresees a time in this century when artificial intelligence can be developed at the atomic level, and an object the size of an apple could surpass human brain capacity to the trillionth power.

At this point, he believes humanity will break into two groups. The Cosmists, who want to build these massively intelligent machines, and the Terrans who are against it. A third, smaller faction, he labeled as the Cyborgists, who want to merge with the artificial intelligence. Prof. de Garis believes the conflict between the Cosmists and the Terrans will be so extreme that wars could be fought over the issue.

The machines he called “artilects”, may become so massively intelligent, said de Garis, that they would regard humanity, in the same way we look at insects, and they could be so powerful as to create their own universes. He boiled it down to the question: Do we build gods or do we build our potential exterminators? In an on-the-spot Fast Blast poll that was conducted, 56% sided with the Terrans, and 44% with the Cosmists.

Intruiged so I am I So lets have a bit more information on these so called ‘Artilects’, What could these artilects be, well essentially a massive computer with power many times greater than the faster super-computers. Currently IBMs’ Blue Gene Which Performs 280600 GigaFlops, To something that would have near infinitesimal processing power; the Quantum Computer.

The Quantum Computer

A quantum computer is any device for computation that makes direct use of distinctively quantum mechanical phenomena, such as superposition and entanglement, to perform operations on data. In a classical (or conventional) computer, the amount of data is measured by bits; in a quantum computer, the data is measured by qubits. The basic principle of quantum computation is that the quantum properties of particles can be used to represent and structure data, and that quantum mechanisms can be devised and built to perform operations with these data.
What is a quantum Computer

Timeline
The Timeline reads with a unnerving sense not ‘if’ but ‘when’ a full usable quantum computer is available. A comparison can be drawn with the current state of technology; rapid development and advancement over a relatively short period of time. The Q-Computer Timeline has the same sort markers that the current computer timeline has. Making the Artilect dilemma/debate something more important than you might think, its not just the realms of science-fiction, its well and truly science-fact.

The point of all this?

Its the background to something that will become, a very real problem within my lifetime. I think it will be interesting to see just what we can predict now and compare this to what actually may happen. Apart from that this stuff just generally interests me a whole lot, and a will be following this post with some more in the future that go into the details of the research, arguments, concepts and ideologies based around the problem of Artilects / god computers and the effect that will have on our race.

10 Replies to “The Rise Of The Artilects? (part1)”

  1. Scientists, science fiction writer and whomever ponders the subject comes to the conclusion that the intellectual robots will want to over run us in order to control. Why? Why would the robots care?
    Why would they care if x or y is happening to them?
    They are taught to learn and understand unlike humans and other existing creatures whoā€™s most powerful impulse is to survive, and in order to survive in the best way possible they search for that that will provide them with the most power or destroy those who might object it.
    One can protest and say that they can be built to care, in which case one should fear now since there are already machines that can autonomously use weapons based on facial recognition.
    So,
    Why?

  2. This does assume that we are not actually quantum processing robots and our need to build AI robots is in itself a way to prove to our collective egos that we are in fact not robots but humans

  3. Mark,
    Are you the guy running this blog?
    and in response to:
    “our need to build AI robots is in itself a way to prove to our collective egos that we are in fact not robots but humans”

    and how will building an AI achive that?

  4. I am running this blog, and i think the point about proving we are not humans is based off; Moore’s law. It would be reasonable to assume we would be able to create a accurate recreation of the world and everything on it, thus we could part of this simulation and not know.

  5. It isn’t entirely related but I was trying to explain what i though The previous poster meant about:

    our need to build AI robots is in itself a way to prove to our collective egos that we are in fact not robots but humans

  6. We are finally coming to understand true religion. We, as a species, are become or evolving into beings that want to be Godlike. Why wouldn’t we want something to start to worship us? Whether they replace us or not. According to Dr. Hugo de Garis, the AI’s we build will replace us. But being the creators, there will be a bit of worship and remeberance. What could be better….?

  7. why??? is this all realy necesary. the cosmists are merely brain washed puppets of there own higher power. The government wants better and stronger weapons this isnt a race for the bettering of humanity but a arms race. Only this time its more then just a war amongst a group of countries this is a matter that will concern the world. Leave it be, its to much we are already the most intelagent beings on the planet why jepordize that out of blind stupidity. I know my opinion wont change the future but it can help recruit. the creation of the artilects is inebidible but it can be stoped!!!

    The end of cosmists is my goal and i can only hope it is yours too, to leave things be. As they are is as they should stay. we live we die this is not the only life we will live i can promise you that. And im not trying to feed you any religous Bull Shit!!! you can feel it in your soul there are different dimensions of this universe and entitys roaming the earth as proof. Beleive what you will but in the end will come your answer.TO THE END OF COSMIST AND TO STOP THE GOAL TO CREATE A HIGHER BEING IS MY WILL!!!

  8. @Hector: Couldn’t disagree more. Artilects will be created, and it will be far from a doomsday event. Humans as a species are evolutionary stagnant and we will continue to strive to learn and evolve further.

    To Say the Singularity event can be stopped is short sited and completely wrong. Without the determination to get to that point whether consciously or otherwise is what brought about the computer you have in front of you now.

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