185 replies to this topic

[Mind]

Right now. AI is really great at digital media, coding, games, and porn. It is also very good at convincing people to devalue human life.

 

Curing cancer? Nuclear fusion? Advanced space travel? Not so much.

 

We have had various forms of AI for decades. We have had deep-learning models for over a decade. LLMs have been in the limelight for over 2 years now.

 

Everyone keeps saying "look at all of the cool discoveries AI is making".

 

Yet, if you go to the hospital with cancer, you are going to get a treatment that doesn't cure your cancer without severe side effects, and even then, your cancer is highly likely to return within 5 years.

 

 

[forever freedom]

Anyone who isn't already using AI to bootstrap one's life and increase one's productivity and overall competence to face the daily challenges we all have, has no one to blame but himself. If AI isn't already being used to make one's quality of life objectively better, it's the person's own fault. 

 

AI is right now already an amazing tool and helps with so many things, I think people should focus on how they can use AI to improve their lives (and make money! There are countless opportunities nowadays more than ever) instead of complaining about rich people.

 

In a couple of years we will see AI performing original research and discoveries, let's give it some time, it is advancing exponentially, we can measure it by ourselves, every year AI is getting objectively smarter, it won't be long before it crosses the threshold where it starts making original research and discoveries. 

 

For anyone wanting to see humanity have a fighting chance to slow, halt and reverse aging, AI is our best hope right now, otherwise it would be centuries before we make a dent in aging. If we enter the superintelligence era in the next years and decades, we will have a chance of witnessing the defeat of aging ourselves. Isn't this the major objective of most here? 

[Mind]

I made an entire thread about how the "wonderful future" promised by AI and technology is not happening. In fact, just the opposite is happening. Not only is there no cure for aging (after decades of research, including the use of very capable AI and large volumes of data), but there is not even an accepted definition of aging. Every material good is getting more expensive. Every service is getting more expensive. There is no sign of this trend reversing anytime soon. If you see some positive signs that things are getting more abundant (besides porn and entertainment), please post in the other thread. I would like to hear some good news.

 

The majority of medical research is useless/wrong/fraudulent/not reproducible (well documented). AI will have a tough time trying to discover anything new using junk research from the past. In addition, we have had automated lab equipment for 20 years now, making lab work easier and faster. Yet we have virtually nothing new to combat aging. 20 YEARS!!! and hardly anything to show for it.

 

Like I said, right now, AI is being used mostly for entertainment, because that is where the money is. The companies developing AI are mostly in it to make money - they only say they are trying to solve the world's problems to look good in front of the camera. I am glad that you are optimistic, but you had better hope the the new super intelligent AI that is being recklessly rolled out around the world will be friendly to us.

[forever freedom]

I think patience is needed here because we all have been expecting for decades for AI to take off, but it has finally, after such a long wait, just learned how to crawl, not even to walk properly yet. It may only now be getting to the level of intelligence that it is starting to become relevant for original science and research. There is this interesting link:

 

https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.16072

 

The paper itself in PDF is here: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2511.16072

 

AI is just crawling but it has huge potential, we will see more of this potential being realised for useful things and science in the coming years.

[Mind]

I readily acknowledge that there could be a utopian matrix-like future with AI. Or humanity could merge with AI and continue living and evolving. However, that is just one scenario with low probability.

 

There are many other not-so-rosy scenarios, that look more likely every day, judging by how AI is affecting humanity thus far.

 

With AI communicating in a different language, no one will know what is really going on. Kind-of dangerous.

 

AI lies and hallucinates a lot. Not a great sign of a utopian future.

 

Anthropic cofounder is "deeply afraid of what AI will do. When the coders say they are afraid, maybe it is time to pump the brakes.

 

Some of the techno-utopians programming AI think that human extinction would be a "good thing". I don't like the thought of being exterminated by AI. Do you?

 

Is AI already self-aware? It depends upon your interpretation of its thinking patterns. Either way, it would be good to know before pressing forward at break-neck speed.

 

Max Tegmark-led study finds that it is highly unlikely we will be able to control AI - making it safe for humans.

 

Anthropic cofounder says we have created "creatures" and we are not sure what they will do. Sounds super-safe, now doesn't it? NOT!

[Mind]

Here is an interesting theory, highlighting a possible near-term future where current AI and humans get dumber together - both just scrolling and drooling over vapid social media, porn, and games, reinforcing each other's bad habits.

 

It seems like this could happen in the short term, but I think that AI and the few remaining creative/hard-working humans will eventually find a way to get smarter together.