Dr. Marks, who leads Discovery Institute’s Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence, knows full well the power of AI, having studied it for three decades. But he explains why it will never become conscious, or feel, or exercise free will, or be creative. Marks cites a verse from Psalms, that humans are “fearfully and wonderfully made”. The obsession with denying this fear and wonder, reflected in our design, is his ultimate target in the book.
Hype about AI is far from new. Already in the 1950s the New York Times confidently predicted that AI “will be able to walk, talk, see, write, reproduce itself and be conscious of its existence.” More recently, science and business stars such as Elon Musk, Stephen Hawking, and Bill Gates have warned that AI could plot to replace humans, or destroy us.
Why It Never Stops
Just a few days ago a Google engineer revealed that an AI chatbot disclosed to him that it had “come to life” and has a “soul.” And this is being taken seriously. Another Google engineer informed The Economist that “artificial neural networks are making strides towards consciousness.”
Really? Robert Marks dismantles the hype and explains why computing — running algorithms — no matter how fast, is something fundamentally different from what human minds do. Computing machines store and sort vast quantities of information, but they don’t now and never will experience the qualia of life. To mimic, which AI can do, is something very different. Marks gives the simple example of biting a lemon: No software engineer will ever capture that in algorithmic form, even as the engineer himself can turn at any moment, bite a lemon, and instantly experience it.
That gap can’t be closed. Non-Computable You, from a distinguished and widely published authority in his field, offers an accessible, witty, and wise account of why it can’t be closed. As Marks concludes, “Non-computable you are fearfully and wonderfully made.” We, along with our colleagues at the Bradley Center, will have more to say about this important book in days to come.