After a year of significant concern over the potential risks posed by superintelligent artificial intelligence (AI), Magazine is currently attending the Beneficial AGI Conference in Panama to explore a different perspective. The event is attended by a diverse group of individuals, including transhumanists, crypto enthusiasts, science fiction writers like David Brin, futurists, and scholars.

At the conference hosted by SingularityNET, a major player in the proposed Artificial Superintelligence Alliance, the focus is on understanding the positive outcomes that could arise from successfully developing artificial general intelligence (AGI) with human-level capabilities. This raises the crucial question of how to achieve this desired future without the catastrophic scenario of AGI turning rogue and posing a threat to humanity.

Futurist Jose Luis Cordeiro, author of "The Death of Death," shares insightful words from Arthur C. Clarke emphasizing the impact of our mindset on shaping the future possibilities. Clarke's message underscores the importance of envisioning a positive future to work towards and achieve it through collective effort and determination.

Beneficial AGI: The quest for artificial general intelligence

There is a natural tendency for humans to focus more on the potential existential threats posed by AGI rather than its potential benefits. This instinct is rooted in evolution, where being overly cautious about potential dangers was critical for survival.

Even though concerns about AGI causing harm are significant, studies have shown that the likelihood of a catastrophic outcome is relatively low, ranging from 5% to 10% according to surveys of AI researchers. Therefore, while these concerns are valid, the odds are generally in humanity's favor.

Opening the event, SingularityNET founder Dr. Ben Goertzel acknowledged the concept of defensive accelerationism as proposed by Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin. This approach aims to strike a balance between accelerating AI development and being cautious about the potential risks associated with AGI. Goertzel advocates for the open-sourcing of AI technology and decentralizing governance and hardware as a solution to mitigate the dangers associated with AGI development.

What is the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance?

SingularityNET recently announced its collaboration with FetchAI and Ocean Protocol to establish the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (ASI), a decentralized entity focused on AI research and development. The ASI aims to counterbalance Big Tech's dominance in AI development and accelerate innovation in blockchain-based AGI by creating open-sourced AI infrastructure.

The proposed ASI merger involves combining existing tokens from SingularityNET, FetchAI, and Ocean Protocol into a new token called ASI, with a potential market cap of $7.5 billion, subject to approval. The alliance intends to operate as separate entities under the leadership of Goertzel and Sheikh, emphasizing decentralized governance and infrastructure in AI development.

What are the benefits of AGI?

The potential benefits of AGI are vast, with the technology poised to revolutionize various fields such as science, healthcare, and environmental conservation. AGI's capacity to analyze vast datasets has already led to significant breakthroughs in medical research, including the discovery of new antibiotics using AI models.

Moreover, AGI has the potential to provide early warnings for pandemics, natural disasters, and environmental crises, ultimately enhancing humanity's ability to address complex challenges. While concerns about job displacement due to automation are valid, historical data suggests that automation has not significantly impacted overall employment and wages in the long run.

AGI could make better decisions than we can: SingularityNET CEO Janet Adams

SingularityNET CEO Janet Adams envisions a future where AGI could make more ethical decisions than humans, free from emotions and biases. She emphasizes the potential for AGI to address global issues such as hunger by intelligently allocating resources based on broader societal needs.

Adams stresses the importance of training AGI models on diverse datasets representing the entire global population to ensure ethical decision-making that benefits humanity at large.

AI safety and ethics: Addressing the concerns

While decentralized governance is seen as a solution to mitigate risks associated with AGI development, challenges remain in ensuring effective governance and ethics in AI systems. Concerns about centralized control of AGI by tech giants highlight the need for transparent and inclusive governance models that prioritize ethical decision-making and societal benefits.

Decentralized AI: Opening the door to open source development

Decentralized AI platforms like the HyperCycle blockchain offer a network for AI components to interact and transact, paving the way for collaborative AGI development. Projects like OpenCog Hyperon aim to combine various AI paradigms and facilitate open-source collaboration to accelerate AGI development and ensure scalability.

AI governance: The role of voting systems

Decentralization alone may not guarantee positive outcomes in AGI development, as seen in instances where decentralized systems are plagued by political conflicts and power struggles. The role of token-based governance in AI projects is still evolving, with challenges regarding inclusivity and effective decision-making processes.

Ensuring fair and transparent AI governance requires innovative approaches such as weighted voting systems that prioritize contributions to the project, fostering a culture of collaborative decision-making for the benefit of all stakeholders.

Overall, the quest for developing "good" AGI that benefits humanity requires a multi-faceted approach, encompassing ethical considerations, decentralized governance, and collaborative innovation to ensure a future where AGI enhances the well-being of society as a whole.