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cover of episode Could AI really achieve consciousness? w/ neuroscientist Anil Seth

Could AI really achieve consciousness? w/ neuroscientist Anil Seth

2024/12/10
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Anil Seth
一位专注于人类意识和AI关系的认知和计算神经科学教授，批评将AI视为具有意识的实体，并强调其伦理挑战。
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Bilal Siddoo
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Bilal Siddoo: 本期节目探讨了AI是否能够实现意识，以及将AI视为工具而非伙伴的重要性。他认为，当前对AI自我意识的讨论过于超前，我们应该关注AI的智能和意识之间的区别。人类容易将自身特质投射到所创造的技术中，这会导致对机器能力的误解并贬低自身。 Bilal Siddoo还讨论了将人脑比作计算机的比喻，以及人脑与AI系统的区别。他认为，人脑的复杂程度远超目前最先进的AI系统，人脑与身体其他部分协同工作，并嵌入到外部世界中，这使得人脑与AI系统有所不同。 最后，Bilal Siddoo还探讨了AI技术带来的伦理问题，例如脑机接口技术的发展带来的思想自由和社会公平等问题。 Anil Seth: Anil Seth教授认为，将大脑比作计算机的比喻非常有用，但我们也应该看到这种比喻的局限性，避免混淆比喻和事物本身。他认为，智能和意识是不同的概念，智能关注功能，而意识关注体验。目前尚无共识关于产生主观体验的必要和充分条件，我们不能仅仅依靠语言模型的陈述来判断其是否具有意识体验。 Anil Seth教授还探讨了意识可能具有独特的生物学属性，物质的本质可能很重要，单纯增加计算能力并不能保证产生意识。他认为，计算能力可能不足以产生意识，构成物质的本质可能很重要。 Anil Seth教授还讨论了人工神经网络可以帮助我们理解生物神经网络，AI可以作为工具帮助我们理解大脑的各个方面，例如模拟感知幻觉和构建大脑连接图谱。他认为，将AI视为“副驾驶”而非“机长”，即人类仍然在掌控之中，这至关重要；将人类特质错误地归因于AI可能非常危险。 最后，Anil Seth教授还探讨了与AI系统互动时，人们容易产生情感连接，这可能导致对AI能力的错误判断，从而增加被操纵的风险。将AI视为有意识的存在可能导致我们浪费道德资本，或者变得冷漠无情；即使AI没有意识，但如果它表现得像是有意识的，也会带来问题。

Deep Dive

Key Insights

Why is Anil Seth concerned about the way we think of AI as conscious?

Anil Seth believes we tend to anthropomorphize AI, projecting human-like traits onto it, which can lead to misunderstandings about its capabilities and diminish our own understanding of human consciousness.

What is the difference between intelligence and consciousness according to Anil Seth?

Intelligence is about doing the right thing at the right time, solving problems flexibly, and can be defined by function. Consciousness, on the other hand, is about subjective experience, the feeling of being aware and experiencing the world, which is not a function but an experience.

Why does Anil Seth think the brain is more complex than the most advanced AI systems?

The human brain has 86 billion neurons with a thousand times more connections, and its architecture is highly intricate and dynamic, with neurotransmitters and glial cells playing significant roles. In contrast, AI systems, while powerful, lack this biological complexity.

How does being embodied give humans an advantage over AI systems?

Human brains evolved to keep the body alive and control movement, working in concert with the body and the environment. This embodied interaction provides a rich feedback loop that AI systems, which are often disembodied, lack.

What does Anil Seth believe is the challenge of AI achieving consciousness?

Seth believes that computation alone may not be sufficient for consciousness. The biological substrate of the brain, with its neurons, neurotransmitters, and embodied interactions, may be essential for consciousness to emerge.

What are the risks of attributing human-like qualities to AI systems?

Attributing consciousness or understanding to AI can lead to mispredictions about its behavior and make us more vulnerable to manipulation. It can also result in a misallocation of moral concern, potentially leading to psychological harm.

What does Anil Seth suggest as a solution to prevent AI from being perceived as conscious?

Seth suggests designing AI systems in a way that minimizes the impression of consciousness, possibly through watermarking or other interface designs that push back against psychological biases, ensuring users maintain a clear understanding of the system's limitations.

What does Anil Seth envision as the future role of AI?

Seth envisions AI as a utility, akin to electricity or water, used in various contexts to solve problems and drive innovation. He believes AI should enhance human capabilities rather than replace them, and its development should be carefully managed to avoid unintended consequences.

Shownotes Transcript

Human brains are often described as computers — machines that are “wired” to make decisions and respond to external stimuli in a way that’s not so different from the artificial intelligence that we increasingly use each day. But the difference between our brains and the computers that drive AI is consciousness – our inner world, defined by experience and awareness. Anil Seth is a professor of cognitive and computational neuroscience at the University of Oxford. He studies human consciousness and he’s concerned about the way we’ve come to think about AI as conscious minds rather than useful tools. Anil and Bilawal sit down to discuss the differences between intelligence and consciousness, the possibility of AI becoming self-aware, and the dangers of assigning human-like traits to our AI assistants. For transcripts for The TED AI Show, visit go.ted.com/TTAIS-transcripts)