We are continuously been delivered movies and tv shows that show science fiction with humanoid artificial intelligence taking over the humanity. Whether or not if this is possible remains a matter of great debate. As of date we don't know how to create conscious softwares, even if we have created one. We won't know, given the current measurement techniques.
This edition dives into the up to date advancement in what is possible and what is not towards conscious softwares. And if we should create one.
Christof Koch, chief scientific officer of the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle believes that -
The answer to these questions may lie in the fabric of the universe itself.
He believes consciousness is an intrinsic property of matter just like mass or energy. Organize matter in just the right way, as in the mammalian brain, and voilà, you can feel. Just for the background, Koch has written three books on consciousness and has spent nearly quarter of a century working on this.
Koch left his position at Caltech in 2011 to become part of a $500 million project launched by the billionaire Paul Allen, Microsoft’s cofounder. The Allen Institute’s goal is to build a detailed atlas of every neuron and synapse in the mammalian brain. That would give neuroscience a firehose of data similar to what the Human Genome Project achieved.
He thinks consciousness could be explained by something called “integrated information theory,” which asserts that consciousness is a product of structures, like the brain, that can both store a large amount of information and have a critical density of interconnections between their parts.
BUT IS THIS REALLY TRUE? OR JUST A THEORY.
Before going deep inside, this week i had a strategy call with one of my client where we discussed on the how to turn software into an engagement system which works on automation.
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We cannot directly detect consciousness in computers and softwares that runs on them, any more than in small insects. We have x-rays to detect light our eyes cannot see, this works because we have a theory of electromagnetism that we trust, and we have instruments that give us measurements we reliably take to indicate the presence of something we cannot sense. Similarly, we could develop a good theory to detect if consciousness exists or not. Unfortunately, there is no consensus theory of consciousness.
If we respect the uncertainty that we see across experts in the field, the rational way to think about the situation is that we are very much in the dark about whether computers could be conscious—and if they could be, how that might be achieved. Depending on what (perhaps as-of-yet hypothetical) theory turns out to be correct, there are three possibilities: computers will never be conscious, they might be conscious someday, or some already are.
Very few people actually try to make conscious softwares, as of today AI is just used to make useful tools based on mathematical calculations. They says if every pattern of the brain can be replicated, nothing else is required. It will conscious.
Even if in 100 years, we replicated everything the machine might be able to speak or walk like us but it will all black inside - no emotions. Just the replication of pattern based out of pure data. But how would you actually test that a machine is conscious?
Are you conscious? Can you prove it?
What about the Turing test?
Turing asked "Can machines think?" - But when you look into the test, it's more about intelligence rather than consciousness. Like when you have get hit - You get asked -
Are you okay? Can you move your hands or limbs?
But for consciousness i am not sure.
Even if we ever built a conscious machine. Now, doesn't this sound terrifying?
Don't you watch science fiction movies? "IRobot", "Runaway AI" - Think about the financial market, all those trading machines, flash crashes. People are going to abuse computer intelligence, blindly maximize for some goal. It would create a situation of power concentration among the few. Massive unemployment and far into the future this could be a reason for our species to extinct - Think nuclear.
But, do not worry. We still haven't figured out the secret yet or we might have but we can't measure it. That being said, time will tell.
For now, we have trending LLMs that is changing up the entire industry and looks promising. I have been building models on the architecture, so i can vouch. Until next time.
📰 Three amazing articles to make better software that you must read
- Don't just build softwares build experience
- Psychology driven product design
- Why every software needs a blueprint?
▶️ Two amazing videos to make better software
Thank you so much for reading this edition of the newsletter, if you found this interesting you would also love my course THE SOFTWARE BLUEPRINT.
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