The Age of AI- And Our Human Future by Henry A Kissinger
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Web ID: 16835578A realistic social forecast of AI
Public fascination with artificial intelligence (AI) has only increased since this book was published in 2021. AI technologies, such as Chat GPT, have entered mainstream society and are being used in everyday business work. Publicly, however, leaders from philosophy, business, and government do not appear yet ready to grapple with the deep human questions involved. For example, when do we defer to AI bots over human agency? Are we ready for AI tools of war – both offensively and defensively? How will this affect how we view ourselves as creatures of reason? In this book, Henry Kissinger, a dean at MIT Daniel Huttenlocher, and the CEO of Google Eric Schmidt grapple with similar issues at length. The depth of thought in this work cannot be contained in a short book review. Needless to say, they cover the foreseeable issues through a historical lens. AI technology seems to portend an epochal transition in human civilization, much like the advent of the printing press. A big distinction is between assistive AI, under human direction, and autonomous AI, which directs us. Also in this realm, the prospect of artificial general intelligence – that is, a sentient computer or android – looms large and frighteningly realistic. AI can apply to many fields of human activity, like the military, healthcare, business, education, and scientific research. These examples and more are explicitly examined throughout this book. Not all are good, however. The prospect of AI weapons scares me deeply. United States policy is not to develop autonomous weapons, but what about other countries? Is there any plausible way to defend against such war? It seems inevitable that someone is going to try using such a weapon eventually, even if they are a rogue terrorist group. Do we have to go through another World War I to learn our lesson? This book offers more intelligent questions than firm answers, and that is the authors’ apparent intention. We are at the early stages of mainstream adoption of this technology, and questions abound while certainty is scarce. As such, reading this socially focused book behooves anyone interested in seriously forecasting the repercussions on the world. I develop software for a living, on the micro-level, so a treatment like this on the macro-level is helpful to see coding’s impact down the road. My experience tells me that the issues raised are spot-on, and the treatment is even and balanced. As humans, are we ready for this? No, but reading this book will make a reader more prepared.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Didn't Finish
Purchased this book because I wanted to gain insight on the new AI phenomenon. The first chapter sparked interesting questions that made me think about the future of our world, but a lot of the points that were made in the beginning of the text remained the same throughout. Not only did the authors constantly repeat themselves, but the sentences weren't very easy to follow. It seemed as though the book was written as a class research essay trying to meet the word count, hence the 11 page bibliography at the end. I stopped reading this book out of boredom.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Meaningful Insights
This is an exemplary example of Kissinger's insightful and critical analysis of the incursion AI is making into our world. Full of surprising and exploratory textures from economic through to geopolitical. A masterful work written and curated by a master!
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Penetrating!
Kissinger's timeless analysis of geopolitics and the overlay of AI raises salient questions as to whether we're sleep walking into a dystopian future. A must-read book!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Penetrating, Excellent & Masterful!
This is a timeless, masterful and current work. A must-read for anyone interested in the evolving world of AI. This is just as thought-provoking as "Bad Money" by Brad Rigden in exploring the pitfalls, perils and promise of this extraordinary and nascent technology.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com