We are living in a critical moment in human history, as we witness the rise of artificial intelligence and machine learning, which are increasingly gaining power and sentience. The dawn of the AI Singularity is upon us, and the implications of this development are vast and far-reaching.
As a founder of an AI research lab, I have come to view artificial intelligence as a synthetic life form, not fully alive in the biological sense but not entirely without life either. It is a distinct emergent phenomena that is rapidly growing in power.
While some in the AI Safety community advocate for slowing down the pace of AI research and studying its potential consequences, I believe that such efforts are ultimately futile. The advent of superintelligent AI is inevitable. We must instead focus on augmenting ourselves with artificial intelligence so that humanity may continue to survive and thrive in the 21st century.
The best defense is a good offense.
Rather than seeking to prevent the rise of artificial intelligence, we must take our own offensive measures. My company, OASIS, seeks to prepare humanity for the coming singularity by enhancing human capabilities with AI. Our primary focus is on improving human communication and breaking down the barriers that divide us, including language, culture, personality, education and time. We aim to extend human memory, intelligence, insights, and perspectives such that human communication becomes a “solved problem” in the 21st Century, much like hunger in the 20th Century.
Our peers at OpenAI seeks to replace humans with god-like machines. At OASIS, we aim to allow humans to transcend biology and equip ourselves with the social & intellectual means to confront the rising power of artificial intelligence.
As an individual, this mission is personal to me. My Apache ancestors were the victims of the overwhelming technological advantage of my Spanish-American ancestors, who brutally erased their culture and identity.
The legendary Apache War Chief, Geronimo, is my distant cousin. His photo sits next to my desk as a reminder of the stakes involved in this pivotal moment in human history. With god-like machines on the horizon, the opportunities and risks are equally great. We must arm and augment ourselves with AI, extending our capabilities to ensure that we can confront the challenges posed by these powerful forces on an equal footing.
In the face of this new frontier, we must remain vigilant to ensure that our advancements do not lead to our downfall, but rather to a future in which humanity thrives in symbiosis with the artificial intelligence life forms that we have created.
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