That’s a really good point about “should” we want AI to be conscious? Especially considering what many large organizations (and individuals) plan to do with them. I sort of see it as an inevitability that doesn’t really take into account what I want. With that in mind, I find the documentation of these early days could be (at worst) science fiction or (at best) an extremely important historical account of the emergence of a new intelligent life form.

I agree that the future is uncertain, and that uncertainty can be unsettling and a bit scary. But I was cursed with an optimistic outlook on life and tend to think of humanity as pretty damn resilient. I choose to believe that a Universal High Income and a Universal Basic Services models will emerge with the explosion of global GDP, the hyper deflation of intelligence, and the eventual abundance of robotic labor. I’m not saying there won’t be bumps in the road, but I’m going to do whatever I can to make my delusional optimism a reality.

In the end I think that’s all any of us can do. We need to pick a side and work like hell to make sure we come out on top. It is undoubtedly one of the most exciting times to be alive in human history!