WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT MACHINES THAT THINK? (Edge Question Series)

Weighing in from the cutting-edge frontiers of science, today’s most forward-thinking minds explore the rise of “machines that think.”

Stephen Hawking recently made headlines by noting, “The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.” Others, conversely, have trumpeted a new age of “superintelligence” in which smart devices will exponentially extend human capacities. No longer just a matter of science-fiction fantasy (2001, Blade Runner, The Terminator, Her, etc.), it is time to seriously consider the reality of intelligent technology, many forms of which are already being integrated into our daily lives. In that spirit, John Brockman, publisher of Edge. org (“the world’s smartest website” – The Guardian), asked the world’s most influential scientists, philosophers, and artists one of today’s most consequential questions: What do you think about machines that think?

• The Future of AI: Explore divergent perspectives from leading thinkers like Steven Pinker and Martin Rees on whether AI will be our masters, slaves, or partners.
• Consciousness in Machines: Move beyond science fiction to ask: If a machine achieves human-level intelligence, would it be capable of suffering or joy? Would it deserve rights?
• AI Ethics and Safety: Confront the urgent safety questions raised by figures like Stephen Hawking, from military arms races in robotics to the challenge of building provably beneficial systems.
• Cognitive Science & Machine Learning: Go inside the science of intelligence itself, examining how breakthroughs in deep learning and our understanding of the human brain are shaping the next generation of AI.

The publisher of the online science salon Edge.org, John Brockman is the editor of Know This, This Idea Must Die, This Explains Everything, This Will Make You Smarter, and other volumes.