tmosley comments on Superintelligence Reading Group 2: Forecasting AI - Less Wrong

10 Post author: KatjaGrace 23 September 2014 01:00AM

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Comment author: KatjaGrace 23 September 2014 01:06:57AM 7 points [-]

If a person wanted to make their prediction of human-level AI entirely based on what was best for them, without regard to truth, when would be the best time? Is twenty years really the sweetest spot?

I think this kind of exercise is helpful for judging the extent to which people's predictions really are influenced by other motives - I fear it's tempting to look at whatever people predict and see a story about the incentives that would drive them there, and take their predictions as evidence that they are driven by ulterior motives.

Comment author: tmosley 24 September 2014 04:12:42AM 3 points [-]

I don't understand this question. The best time for the emergence of a great optimizer would be shortly after you were born (earlier if your existence were assured somehow).

If an AI is a friendly optimizer, then you want it as soon as possible. If it is randomly friendly or unfriendly, then you don't want it at all (the quandary we all face). Seems like asking "when" is a lot less relevant than asking "what". "What" I want is a friendly AI. "When" I get it is of little relevance, so long as it is long enough before my death to grant me "immortality" while maximally (or sufficiently) fulfilling my values.

Comment author: leplen 24 September 2014 03:09:29PM 7 points [-]

The question isn't asking when the best time for the AI to be created is. It's asking what the best time to predict the AI will be created is. E.g. What prediction sounds close enough to be exciting and to get me that book deal, but far enough away as to be not obviously wrong and so that people will have forgotten about my prediction by the time it hasn't actually come true. This is an attempt to determine how much the predictions may be influenced by self-interest bias, etc.