MalcolmMcLeod's Shortform
Jan 214
MalcolmMcLeod
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Replying toDario Amodei – The Adolescence of Technology
On the one hand, I am glad to see such awareness and honesty about the risks. On the other hand, I remain furious at Dario's ceaseless insistence that a pause or slowdown is completely impossible (and so, it is implied) not even worth trying for.
Replying toThe Possessed Machines (summary)
It's stated at the bottom of the webpage. After a few paragraphs at the start I was like... "ok surely this is AI generated" and popped it in a few detectors. i happened to scroll to the bottom to see how long the dang thing was and saw the disclaimer. i wish this former lab insider---who surely has money and at least one eloquent friend---could've paid another human being to rewrite it. but alas!
Replying toThe Possessed Machines (summary)
I am surprised you didn't mention the fact that the whole thing was paraphrased to preserve anonymity by Opus 4.5. (Which really stood out to me! When I first read it, I assumed it was AI-generated, and I was disconcerted to see such quality of thought coming with such a slopreek to the prose.)
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AI company heads should sign the Superintelligence Statement (by their professed values)
Elon Musk, Demis Hassabis, and Dario Amodei have now all said that they would slow down if they could (or in Dario's case, "wish we had more time"). They should sign the Statement on Superintelligence---there is not much daylight between their casual remarks in public and what that statement proposes. Employees should pressure their leadership to sign this; we need to make common knowledge so that it's not so easy for them to say "but oh that will never happen."
I don't know how sincere they are about this desire. They sure don't talk about it much, and when they do, they... (read more)
I expect some measure of "speciation" to occur, but not as a result of money-lack. Rather, some cultures will reject these techs, and as the cultures that accept these techs drift biologically farther from "base humans," the more entrenched the social and cultural divisions will be.
Replying toIn My Misanthropy Era
100%! I encourage you to do so. have a soda to give yourself something to do with your hands. give yourself permission to *act drunk*, i.e., be loud, direct, shameless, goofy, emotional, etc.----other people's drunkenness can easily "rub off" on you.
Replying toIn My Misanthropy Era
love how game you are. and admittedly it differs regionally, but this can / should / does work. you haven't seen people mingle with others because (i'm guessing) it's hard to tell when "two groups are mingling" in a way that's distinct from a single group hanging out. (also in fact people do this MUCH less than they used to, but they're not much less open to it.)
i recommend college or post-college bars, followed by mixed-gender dive bars. or basement shows / unofficial bars. cocktail places are probably bad for this, they are real into Adult Alienation TM. fanciness is generally a barrier. the minglability can be roughly sussed out from the... (read more)
Replying toIn My Misanthropy Era
Nicely written and self-aware, thanks for sharing. I recommend getting drunk at a bar! (Not a sports bar. You wouldn't have much to talk about. I recommend taking a mixed-gender group of friends and deliberately mingling with other such groups, trying your best to Get To Know Folks.) You were doing the sandcastle thing.
If anyone has influence at a venture capital firm, it would be really really worthwhile to make this one of their big "calls for startups."