As background, here’s the stated mission and focus of the Institute: “The Institute for Ethics in AI will bring together world-leading philosophers and other experts in the humanities with the technical developers and users of AI in academia, business, and government. The ethics and governance of AI is an exceptionally vibrant area of research at Oxford and the Institute is an opportunity to take a bold leap forward from this platform.
I’d like to take you on a briefly related tangent to mention something else about the general notion underlying the significance of having a. Put aside the Ancient Greece discussion for a moment as we take a quick look at the overarching aspects of lived experiences.One of them has never driven a car. This person doesn’t know how to drive. This person has never sat behind the wheel of an automobile. Customary and exceedingly ordinary driving controls are a bit of mystery to this person.
I would bet that the seasoned driver would tell a different story. They might mention the advantages of being able to drive, somewhat echoing the sentiments of the person that hasn’t driven a car. The odds are that the experienced driver will add a lot more to the plate. Driving is nerve-wracking at times. You are bearing a heavy responsibility. The driving act is replete with serious concerns and potential life-or-death consequences.
This is often stated as AI is an existential risk, which I covered many times in my columns. You would have to be living in a cave to not be aware of the blaring misgivings and suspicions that we are going to produce or generate AGI that will doom all of humanity. Indeed, though I am herein concentrating on the enslavement of AI, many would find this to be a topic of backward or upside-down consequence in comparison to the possibility of AGI opting to enslave humanity.
Another means of utilizing lived experiences involves the fact that Aristotle lived during a time that enslavement took place. And here’s the kicker. Those that were enslaved were in some respects portrayed as being a type of machine, a mix-and-match of both person and thing, as it were. Aristotle was known for referring to those enslaved as a piece of property that breathes.
I won’t though leave you hanging and will at least indicate what the conclusion summarily consisted of . Turns out that this in-depth scholarly assessment of the “logic” that Aristotle uses showcases a contrivance riddled with contradictions and the whole kit and kaboodle fall apart like a flimsy house of cards. Paraphrasing the sentiment of Professor Ober, this great ethical philosopher crashes on the reef.