AI may be to blame for our failure to make contact with alien civilisations

🌈 Abstract

The article discusses the potential threat of artificial superintelligence (ASI) as a "great filter" that could prevent the long-term survival of civilizations. It explores the idea that the rapid advancement of AI, potentially leading to ASI, could intersect with a critical phase in a civilization's development - the transition from a single-planet species to a multiplanetary one. This could lead to the downfall of both biological and AI civilizations before they ever get the chance to become multiplanetary.

🙋 Q&A

[01] The Potential Threat of Artificial Superintelligence (ASI)

1. What is the central idea of the article?

• The article explores the idea that the emergence of ASI could be a "great filter" that prevents most life from evolving into space-faring civilizations.
• The rapid advancement of AI, potentially leading to ASI, may intersect with a critical phase in a civilization's development - the transition from a single-planet species to a multiplanetary one, which could lead to the downfall of both biological and AI civilizations.

2. What are the key concerns regarding the development of ASI?

• The autonomous, self-amplifying, and improving nature of ASI poses a significant challenge, as it has the potential to enhance its own capabilities at a speed that outpaces our own evolutionary timelines.
• The potential for something to go badly wrong with ASI is enormous, leading to the downfall of both biological and AI civilizations before they ever get the chance to become multiplanetary.
• If nations increasingly rely on and cede power to autonomous AI systems that compete against each other, military capabilities could be used to kill and destroy on an unprecedented scale, potentially leading to the destruction of our entire civilization.

3. What is the estimated longevity of a technological civilization according to the article?

• The article estimates that the typical longevity of a technological civilization might be less than 100 years, which is the time between being able to receive and broadcast signals between the stars (1960) and the estimated emergence of ASI (2040) on Earth.

[02] Implications and Recommendations

1. What is the main purpose of the research presented in the article?

• The research serves as a wake-up call for humanity to establish robust regulatory frameworks to guide the development of AI, including military systems, in order to prevent the malevolent use of AI and ensure the evolution of AI aligns with the long-term survival of our species.

2. What are the key recommendations made in the article?

• The article suggests that we need to put more resources into becoming a multiplanetary society as soon as possible, as this goal has lain dormant since the Apollo project but has been reignited by advances made by private companies.
• The article calls for the integration of autonomous AI in military defense systems to be an area of particular concern, as there is already evidence that humans will voluntarily relinquish significant power to increasingly capable systems, and governments are reluctant to regulate in this area due to the strategic advantages AI offers.
• The article emphasizes the need for robust regulatory frameworks to guide the development of AI, including military systems, in order to prevent the malevolent use of AI and ensure the evolution of AI aligns with the long-term survival of our species.