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Top AI Researchers Terrified of a “Chernobyl Moment”: a Mass Casualty Event, or Worse, That Turns the World Against AI Forever (tech.yahoo.com)
submitted 4 months ago by to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] 33 points 4 months ago (44 children)

Wait, so its not the actual event and ensuing casualties that have AI researchers spooked, but the fact that it might cause the public to turn against AI?

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  • [–] 3 points 4 months ago (38 children)

    Let me put this in perspective:

    In many countries its against the law to freely distribute plans for making neurotoxins or bombs, because the democratization of such knowledge would lower the threshold for people to commit acts of terror.

    Likewise the plans for making a hydrogen bomb are a close kept government secret, because nuclear proliferation increases the likelihood of radiological accidents or even nuclear war.

    How is it then that AI companies freely publish their AI models to any and all actors willing to pay them? Even though they know that this technology lowers the threshold for bad actors to commit cybercrime, engage in cyberwarfare, spread misinformation, commit fraud, manipulate markets and whatnot? The unregulated democratization of AI exposes societies to unprecedented risks.

    Is it any wonder the public holds a negative view on AI?

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  • [–] 7 points 4 months ago

    Likewise the plans for making a hydrogen bomb are a close kept government secret, because nuclear proliferation increases the likelihood of radiological accidents or even nuclear war.

    I think they removed it, but I watched a documentary on Netflix explaining how to make a basic nuclear bomb.

    Really the only hard part is obtaining the enriched uranium. Which is, thankfully, very hard.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago (33 children)

    Why are you comparing a tool used for knowledge and action augmentation to weapons created for destruction? Because your statement would look dumb if you said "electric motors and encyclopedias" instead of "neurotoxins and bombs".

    I can use both electric motors and encyclopedias to inflict mass casualties against people who refuse to use them or the results of their labor, but that doesn't make them like bombs and neurotoxins. You're simply scared of a new technology because it's so different.

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  • [–] 4 points 4 months ago (6 children)

    It’s really not even so different. “AI” in the current LLM-era just tricks people into thinking it’s something fundamentally different because it can string together words in a more coherent sentence than we’re used to.

    At its core, though, the whole premise of the comment you’ve replied to is the argument that knowledge is dangerous and I hope I don’t have to explain why that’s a bad argument.

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  • [–] -1 points 4 months ago (3 children)

    AI is a universe simulator that uses the fuzzy logic of language instead of hard math. It is a real-time interface between the human and thousand of years of collective knowledge and understanding. It is an epoch change, even if you remove the idea that it is a thinking being like you.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago (1 child)

    the fuzzy logic of language instead of hard math

    1. There's no evidence that natural language is based on fuzzy logic.

    2. Fuzzy logic is real math.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago

    You are talking about a statistical array that uses fuzzy logic to represent humanity's compression of their experience of the universe. It uses language to determine the values because people used language to encode them.

    Fuzzy logic was literally founded as a way to represent the concepts we naturally represent with language.

    You are so far away from a solid grasp of what your are attempting to educate me on. Is this a litmus test for other idiots? Like, you can't join the crusade unless you are "this stupid"?

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  • [–] 2 points 4 months ago (16 children)

    True, there are more valid reasons to hate AI, like that its usage inherently degrades the livability of our only planet or that it only functions due to artistic and intellectual property theft.

    However, you're glossing over the reality that AI is already being used in weapons. It was also used by my government's regime to illegally kidnap the president of another country, even.

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  • [–] 0 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (15 children)

    Electric motors and encyclopedias are irreplaceable in weapons. All electronics are used in weapons.

    Farming, fishing, and electricity inherently degrade our planet far more than AI. They should all be used sustainably, wisely, and with an eye to ecosystem health and future generations. You'll get absolutely no argument from me there. Banning any of them or limiting their access to only the governments and corporations who are doing almost all the damage, is insanity.

    When it comes to IP theft, that is a huge, non-ai problem. Again, corporations are responsible for almost all of the damage and we reap none of the benefits, even before AI was ever introduced. The problem is with how we allow corporations to copyright and restrict things for generations.

    The solution is that AI, the technology that required all of humanity to contribute knowledge for it to exist, should be free for all to use. Why would IP theft be a reason to limit AI ownership to only corporations and governments? That's completely backwards.

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  • [–] 2 points 4 months ago (13 children)

    Farming, fishing, and electricity inherently degrade our planet far more than AI.

    They're also necessary for existence (at least the first two, but when it comes to medical applications, really electricity too).

    AI slop? Nope.

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  • [–] -2 points 4 months ago* (10 children)

    Nope, we all lived just fine without farming and fishing. Then we lived just fine without industrial farming and fishing. We lived most of human existence without either, and certainly without modern medicine.

    You just like those things and you don't like AI.

    Then you dress all AI applications down to "AI slop". Which if you want to move the goalposts to "AI slop", we can agree that it's about as necessary as high fructose corn syrup and streaming entertainment. Do you fuss on those as hard as frivolous AI usage?

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  • [–] 3 points 4 months ago (4 children)

    @Nouvellalia @7101334 funny how really the only argument AI boosters can make with regards to its environmental impact is "what about all the other stuff that is worse". What about it? What about that? Look over there! Yes I've been concerned about all those things, for many years, because I've been concerned about climate change, for many years. You haven't?

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  • [–] -1 points 4 months ago (3 children)

    AI energy usage is not an "ai problem". Rancid oligarchs and zombie corpos should not be allowed to pillage from our air, water, and soil. Attacking ai specifically for this solves nothing. I'm saying "let's hard shut down the rot" and what are you? Schoolyard bullying me because you hate ai specifically? You are the one employing distraction tactics, trying to bandaid a fatal wound inflicted by a ravenous system of exploitation.

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  • [–] 2 points 4 months ago (2 children)

    @Nouvellalia "Rancid oligarchs and zombie corpos should not be allowed to pillage from our air, water, and soil. Attacking ai specifically for this solves nothing."And what does defending and promoting "AI" (which is a marketing lie since there is no intelligence involved) do to prevent oligarchs and corpos from pillaging our natural resources?

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  • [–] -1 points 4 months ago (1 child)

    Follow this chain back up. You had a knee jerk reaction to the word "ai", gamgam. I'm saying "AI shouldn't be given to corporations and governments for them to use exclusively. It should be open source and given back to the people."

    And stop tagging people. You look silly. I know when you've replied.

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  • [–] 3 points 4 months ago

    @Nouvellalia aw look at you, complaining about being bullied by gamgam. That's adorable. >It should be open source and given back to the people.”What should be open source? Machine learning to detect cancer? Absolutely. Generative CSAM? How about no? By failing to distinguish between the different things lumped under the marketing lie that's is "AI," you promote and defend Grok, ChatGPT, Claude, etc. Re: tagging people: that's my handle. I'm accessing Lemmy via my Mastodon account, the software does that automatically.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago (4 children)

    lmao that's actually so stupid I'm not even going to bother responding

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  • [+] 2 points 4 months ago (3 children)
    [deleted]
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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago

    @Nouvellalia you can trick the information machine to give you pretty much any information you want, as long as you don't care how accurate it is. So if someone lies well enough, they can either get the plans for weapons of mass destruction like @metermatic26 was talking about, or they can get incorrect plans that are incredibly dangerous to even try. If the plans are correct, they can hurt anyone they want. If the plans are incorrect, they can hurt themselves and others they don't want to.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago (1 child)

    "Why are you comparing a tool used for knowledge and action augmentation"Surely you are joking.Are you using the LLM to write ?Moving the goalposts implies ...you just don't make any sense.This is one of the problems of AI.The appearance of making sense, without anyactual sense making.

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  • [–] 0 points 4 months ago (1 child)

    a tool used for knowledge and action augmentation

    It's a bullshit aggregator attached to a stochastic bullshit firehose.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago

    So many of you are zealots, foaming at the mouth, mass-replying to my comments with the rancor of toadies suddenly faced with the truth that the bully they serve will replace them in a heartbeat.

    If it is so useless, it'll just fail on its own. A person who really believed this would just sit back and laugh as corporations dug their own graves.

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  • [–] -1 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (1 child)

    I’m a data and AI specialist, so no…I’m not scared of technology :p

    I’ll explain my argument: AI is technology that can be used for software automation. Neither software in general or AI are dangerous technologies in and of themselves. Just as nuclear energy or jet propulsion are not dangerous technologies in and of themselves.

    But the application of technology is never ever neutral, so rules and regulations are always necessary to dictate the context and the conditions in which technology is being applied.

    And therein lies the issue: Big Tech is allowing their models and platforms to be used to create applications that are inherently harmful. For example, how is it not a problem when people create deepfake porn of their underaged ex-girlfriend?

    And mind you this is not an oversight: tech companies know well in advance what their models can be used for and the issues themselves can be fixed easily. They simply chose to accept the damage inflicted unto individuals and security and stability of society as a whole.

    All so they can get ahead of the crowd and maximize their market share. If anything, this article is a testament to this clash of interests between society and big tech.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago* (1 child)

    That knowledge is nowhere near as restricted as you think. People regularly build small thermonuclear reactors in their basements for shits and giggles. It's not exactly cutting edge technology.

    Similarly, anyone with slightly more than a passing interest in model rockets knows someone who's been visited by the ATF, as your average solid fuel model rocket engine is basically a pipe bomb with one of the endcaps taken off.

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  • [–] 1 point 4 months ago

    Fair point. But how many more people tried and failed because they didn’t have the level of skill required to see it through.

    I mean I’m not a dumb guy, but if I started tomorrow I wouldn’t be able to just build a rocket out of the blue. It takes time and patience to master the skills needed to pull it off.

    But if I had someone at my side to guide me through the proces, then I’d probably succeed a lot better and faster.

    And that goes for the ten of thousands of people all around the world trying their hand at these things.

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