I wrote a letter to the White House.
I’ve just written a letter to the White House addressed to the US Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo, calling for a set of diverse experts, including scientists, philosophers, tech leaders, and governments around the world, among others, to proactively plan and lead the way forward on the future of Artificial Intelligence.
There’s no doubt about it: History has already taught us that with every revolutionary innovation comes massive change. And just like the invention of the internet, AI will impact society at every level; reshaping how we work, live and socialize. Yes, there will be jobs lost, but new jobs will also be created.
It’s critical that we take action now, given that we are merely 22 years away from experiencing AI singularity (when growth explodes to an AI superintelligence that far surpasses all human intelligence, making its own decisions and creating its own technology, perhaps making humans obsolete) and only 6 years away from AI with human levels of intelligence, according to Ray Kurzweil, a futurist who has famously made many accurate tech predictions in the past.
John von Neumann and Vernor Vinge also argue that with the creation of this super intelligence, it is difficult or impossible for present-day humans to predict what our lives would be like in a post-singularity world. It would be uncontrollable and irreversible.
As the capacity for AI grows - perhaps recently spiralling faster than we initially envisioned - the burning questions still remain: How can we use AI to create a future of GOOD? And what systems and regulations do we need in place to help drive this? “Pausing” as Elon Musk and Co. suggest is not the answer.
Rather than just leaving the future of AI (and the future of society) in the hands of profit-driven and revenue-hungry big tech corporates - who, by the way, have already demonstrated a questionable track record of dealing with social media and data privacy - the time has come for more ethical, diverse and PROACTIVE decision-making.
As such, I encourage my fellow agencies, network of tech leaders, and CEOs to join me in writing your own letter (please message me if you need further details on who/where to address your letters to) and add your voice to this turning point in humanity’s history.
Once it’s here, it’s here and there will be no going back.
