How on earth would colonising other planets increase the chance of UFAI? It wouldn't increase the number of people, and therefore wouldn't increase the number of people capable of creating AI, or the number of AI projects.
At the present time, colonising other plants probably would not increase the chance of UFAI, because we will probably develop AI before colonized planets would develop to the point of competing with Earth in R&D.
Assigning zero utility to UFAI does not mean we focus on nothing but avoiding it, in fact assigning zero utility to UFAI doesn't mean anything at all since utility functions are unchanged by affine transformations.
It means that all "UFAI" outcomes are considered equivalent. Instead of asking what the real utility function is, you just make these two categories, FAI and UFAI, and say "UFAI bad", and thus don't have to answer detailed questions about what specifically is bad, and how bad it is.
Also, your statement is not correct. When someone says "a utility function is unchanged by affine transformations", what they mean is that the outcome of a decision process using that utility function will be the same. And that is not true if we define zero utility as "that utility level at which I am indifferent to life." An outcome leading to utility epsilon for eternity has infinite utility. An outcome leading to utility minus epsilon means it is better to destroy ourselves, or the universe.
As for balance of power, even if it is possible (or a remotely good thing) it would require at least two AIs to foom at pretty much exactly the same time, which seems frankly unlikely.
If you assume FOOM is the only possible outcome. See the long debate between Eliezer & Robin.
At the present time, colonising other plants probably would not increase the chance of UFAI, because we will probably develop AI before colonized planets would develop to the point of competing with Earth in R&D.
Another good reason why number of colonized planets is irrelevant. If you agree with me about that then why did you mention it?
...It means that all "UFAI" outcomes are considered equivalent. Instead of asking what the real utility function is, you just make these two categories, FAI and UFAI, and say "UFAI bad", and thus d
Having all known life on Earth concentrated on a single planet is an existential risk. So we should try to spread out, right? As soon as possible?
Yet, if we had advanced civilizations on two planets, that would be two places for unfriendly AI to originate. If, as many people here believe, a single failed trial ruins the universe, you want to have as few places trying it as possible. So you don't want any space colonization until after AI is developed.
If we apply that logic to countries, you would want as few industrialized nations as possible until AAI (After AI). So instead of trying to help Africa, India, China, and the Middle East develop, you should be trying to suppress them. In fact, if you really believed the calculations I commonly see used in these circles about the probability of unfriendly AI and its consequences, you should be trying to exterminate human life outside of your developed country of choice. Failing to would be immoral.
And if you apply it within the USA, you need to pick one of MIT and Stanford and Carnegie Mellon, and burn the other two to the ground.
Of course, doing this will slow the development of AI. But that's a good thing, if UFAI is most likely and has zero utility.
In fact, if slowing development is good, probably the best thing of all is just to destroy civilization and stop development completely.
Do you agree with any of this? Is there a point where you think it goes too far? If so, say where it goes too far and explain why.
I see two main flaws in the reasoning.
ADDED: A number of the comments so far imply that the first AI built will necessarily FOOM immediately. FOOM is an appealing argument. I've argued in favor of it myself. But it is not a theorem. I don't care who you are; you do not know enough about AI and its future development to bet the future of the universe on your intuition that non-FOOMing AI is impossible. You may even think FOOM is the default case; that does not make it the only case to consider. In this case, even a 1% chance of a non-foom AI, multiplied by astronomical differences in utility, could justify terrible present disutility.