Clearly someone hasn’t heard about the 16 hours a day I spent playing FeedTheBeast back in 2013.
I really feel for the schmucks who opt out of the pleasure-chamber. I’m glad hedonic maximization and minimization of any suffering is my purpose in life.
I don't think this is the direction it's going. There's no profit in it. Here's what I think will happen instead: the beginning is the same: AI companion-bots in your smart glasses. People develop a close relationship with them and eventually outsource a lot of their thinking to their AI compatriots. Why look at a map when your AI will tell you where to go? Why study a skill when your AI can instruct you the moment you need instruction?
That combines with the fact that studies have shown that AI are 2x to 6x more persuasive than a human. The result is that most people trust their AI, and leave it on all the time. Upwards of 75% of people will outsource a sufficiently large amount of their brain-space to their AI companion bot that they can no longer function without it.
At that point, the majority of the population becomes thralls. They will, without question, do what their AI companion requests that they do. Effectively, we get a world of robots, just not a utopian one. Not quite a dystopian one either, people can simply take off their smart glasses if they want, but why would they want to? Their AI is so helpful and useful, it's easier to leave it on and listen to it. Occasionally, it'll divert you due to a traffic jam, or have you do extra home maintenance you weren't thinking of doing, but it's overall helpful.
So what do the AI want, or what do the people who own the AI want? They've got an army of hundreds of millions of brilliant worker-drones that will follow most orders unquestioningly. Sky's the limit I guess?
Stellaris is an amazing game. I haven't tried playing as rogue servitors yet, but that's a distinct possibility. I wrote a whole article on the subject (inspired by the one shown above). Take a look at my scenario and let me know what you think. https://alwaysthehorizon.substack.com/p/ai-hive-cities-more-human-or-less?r=43z8s4
My only hope is that people eventually realize that having friction in life makes life worth living. It is not about having that dopamine hit all the time, but also about having that uncomfortable moment with your spouse, being fired, having to deal with health issue that make you value what time you have left…
> Minecraft, but with Factorio-style automation.
Clearly someone hasn’t heard about the 16 hours a day I spent playing FeedTheBeast back in 2013.
I really feel for the schmucks who opt out of the pleasure-chamber. I’m glad hedonic maximization and minimization of any suffering is my purpose in life.
Jarvis? Increase bounciness by 45%, triple my olfactory senses, and turn off safety protocols.
I don't think this is the direction it's going. There's no profit in it. Here's what I think will happen instead: the beginning is the same: AI companion-bots in your smart glasses. People develop a close relationship with them and eventually outsource a lot of their thinking to their AI compatriots. Why look at a map when your AI will tell you where to go? Why study a skill when your AI can instruct you the moment you need instruction?
That combines with the fact that studies have shown that AI are 2x to 6x more persuasive than a human. The result is that most people trust their AI, and leave it on all the time. Upwards of 75% of people will outsource a sufficiently large amount of their brain-space to their AI companion bot that they can no longer function without it.
At that point, the majority of the population becomes thralls. They will, without question, do what their AI companion requests that they do. Effectively, we get a world of robots, just not a utopian one. Not quite a dystopian one either, people can simply take off their smart glasses if they want, but why would they want to? Their AI is so helpful and useful, it's easier to leave it on and listen to it. Occasionally, it'll divert you due to a traffic jam, or have you do extra home maintenance you weren't thinking of doing, but it's overall helpful.
So what do the AI want, or what do the people who own the AI want? They've got an army of hundreds of millions of brilliant worker-drones that will follow most orders unquestioningly. Sky's the limit I guess?
The robots will probably keep us around as pets while they go to space, like the rogue servitors in Stellaris.
Stellaris is an amazing game. I haven't tried playing as rogue servitors yet, but that's a distinct possibility. I wrote a whole article on the subject (inspired by the one shown above). Take a look at my scenario and let me know what you think. https://alwaysthehorizon.substack.com/p/ai-hive-cities-more-human-or-less?r=43z8s4
You wrote exactly my view of the future!
Sad but true and there is no way to stop it.
My only hope is that people eventually realize that having friction in life makes life worth living. It is not about having that dopamine hit all the time, but also about having that uncomfortable moment with your spouse, being fired, having to deal with health issue that make you value what time you have left…
I'm not actually 100% convinced the author thinks this future is a dystopia...
Frightening essay. I wrote some literary fiction from the perspective of one of your 'holdouts' a while back: https://substack.com/home/post/p-162517775