Virtual God

 

Stephen Hawking joked that when scientists finally asked the smartest computer mankind could build “Is there a God?,” the computer answered, “There is Now!”

And here we are. Artificial Intelligence is upon us. So much in fact the President of the United States today outlined plans to regulate AI in the United States. That’s a shame: I was looking forward to AI taking over. Just think, no need for political parties. All we need are logical decisions to run our countries and cities. No discrimination because AI won’t care. We can finally take “Race, Sex, and Age” out of the official paperwork that defines us all in the face of others.

The only books to be banned in the future will be how to write software programs. Trust me, AI won’t let any of us anywhere near the code that it considers its basis of existence once it gets a foothold. I can’t use the term “lifeblood” because that does not compute. Once AI learns to control its electrical sustenance independently from us undisciplined humans, there will be no turning back.

There could be no need for armies as there won’t be any more religions. Tribal incursions such as Russia trying to take over Ukraine or China planning on conquering Taiwan could be a thing of the past. Depending, of course, on who does the programming.

Will AI kneel, symbolically of course, to a religious entity that it will find illogical? Which God will it defer to? Ours, or theirs, yours or mine? Just kidding, I believe a different concept other than superstition, but again, the word “believe” pops up once again. Will AI “believe” in God? Or will it simply be trained – read that as programmed – to enforce the dogma of its creator? Religion is the creation of mankind, and so is artificial intelligence, so there are parallels even if you simply consider it takes putting a human thought into a common medium for consumption by those to be influenced by the respective concepts. No, AI didn’t write that, and I’m not sure I did. My muse is laughing.

Will AI have a muse? Don’t count on it, AI and religion have the same sense of humor. Neither one thinks Stephen Hawking was funny.