Talks to Watch

Why Not Just: Think of AGI Like a Corporation?

163K views · Dec 23, 2018 · 15:27 · 5 HN recommenders · 8 mentions · discussed 2020–2023

Robert Miles asks whether corporations can be thought of as artificial general superintelligences and how far the analogy holds. He argues the differences, such as being limited by employees' capabilities, matter for AI safety.

Why Hacker News points people here: HN points to it as an accessible rebuttal to the claim that AI risk is just corporate risk.

“He presents the material in a very interesting and accessible way.”HN comment, 2020

What Hacker News said 8

RecommendsVeedracFeb 2020

“Here's some actual insight on the topic”

Actual insight on the AGI risk argument.

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In which a science fiction writer weaves a fantastical tale about how the Doomsayers are making their decisions from fantastical tales and emotions, instead of actually reading and responding to the arguments they present. The irony is so palpable that if it wasn't so disingenuous, it might even be funny. Here's some actual insight on the topic: this video

in “AI thinks like a corporation (2018)” · view on HN
RecommendsstupidcarJun 2020

“He presents the material in a very interesting and accessible way.”

Accessible look at whether corporations are superintelligence.

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I'd echo one of their recommendations: Robert Mile's YouTube channel focussing on AI safety. He presents the material in a very interesting and accessible way. For example, this video on whether or not corporations can be considered a form of superintelligence: this video

in “DeepMind AI reading list [pdf]” · view on HN
RecommendsjengletonJul 2020

“Robert Miles has an interesting response to the claim that corporations are AIs”

Argues corporations are limited by their employees' capabilities.

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Robert Miles has an interesting response to the claim that corporations are AIs: this video To paraphrase: yes, corporations function as agents, but their maximum performance is limited by the capabilities of their employees. A corporate AI may have a much broader set of skills than any single person, and may be able to tackle many concurrent tasks, but as an "intelligent agent" its decision making capabilities probably don't scale exponentially (or even linearly) with its headcount. In the sense that a corporation's maximum intelligence is likely to be in the same ballpark as the smartest humans, it can't be seen as a true superintelligence.

in “Dude, You Broke the Future (2017)” · view on HN
RecommendsHaukeHiMar 2022

“There's a good video by Robert Miles about that”

Asks whether corporations are artificial general superintelligences.

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There's a good video by Robert Miles about that 'Why Not Just: Think of AGI Like a Corporation?' this video are kind of like AIs, if you squint. How hard do you have to squint though, and is it worth it? In this video we ask: Are corporations artificial general superintelligences?

in “It looks like you’re trying to take over the world” · view on HN
RecommendsWhitneyLandJan 2023

“these are some ways it could be very different.”

Explains how AGI differs from corporations.

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>We have that now. It's called a corporation. I think there’s a good argument to say no, we don’t have that now, and these are some ways it could be very different. Video: Why not just think of AGI as a corporation? this video

in “We could stumble into AI catastrophe” · view on HN
Cites itafarrellSep 2021

Cited as AI safety context for engagement optimization.

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There seems to be an AI safety problem here: The youtube algorithm is optimizing for engagement at the cost of some other less-quantifiable human value like social trust. this video

in “YouTube is banning anti-vaccine activists and blocking all anti-vaccine content” · view on HN
Cites itmitthrowaway2Apr 2023

“There is a rebuttal to this view presented here by Robert Miles”

Rebuttal to the view that AI risks equal corporate risks.

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> Most of the things people are worried about AI doing are things corporations already do. There is a rebuttal to this view presented here by Robert Miles: this video

Cites itpixl97May 2023

“This falls in with Meditations On Moloch.”

Earlier video on AGI as corporation, tied to Moloch.

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4 years ago: Why Not Just: Think of AGI Like a Corporation? this video >Who’s in control? Nobody. This falls in with Meditations On Moloch.

in “Yoshua Bengio: How Rogue AIs May Arise” · view on HN