Prof. Emily M. Bender(she/her)Feb 25, 2023

Just in case anyone forgot, Altman of Open AI is reminding us that they believe they are actually building "AGI" ("AI systems that are generally smarter than humans") and that ChatGPT et al are steps towards that:

https://openai.com/blog/planning-for-agi-and-beyond/

>>

Planning for AGI and beyond

Our mission is to ensure that artificial general intelligence—AI systems that are generally smarter than humans—benefits all of humanity.

Show threadProf. Emily M. Bender(she/her)Feb 25, 2023

That is, the very people in charge of building #ChatGPT want to believe SO BADLY that they are gods, creating thinking entities, that they have lost all perspective about what a text synthesis machine actually is.

I wish I could just laugh at this, but it's problematic because these people living in a fantasy world are also influencing policy decisions while also stirring up the current #AIhype frenzy, which also makes it more difficult to design and pass effective policy.

Show threadMilesMcBainFeb 25, 2023
@emilymbender could there be a thing where people who spend years training their minds to emulate computers are more inclined to look into the matrices and see themselves?
Show threadColman ReillyFeb 25, 2023
@milesmcbain @emilymbender shouldn’t be, because once you know what’s going on it’s pretty obvious it isn’t general AI, unless you really want to believe it is.
Show threadThe Doctor
@Colman @milesmcbain @emilymbender People lie best when they lie to themselves.
Feb 25, 2023 at 6:59pmWeb