One Line
The text suggests that the hype around AI is a reflection of capitalist control and the desire of powerful companies to dominate labor and perpetuate hierarchies, rather than a true technological revolution.
Slides
Slide Presentation (11 slides)
Key Points
- The AI hype is driven by the desire for power and control, particularly among capitalists and institutions, rather than a genuine technological revolution
- AI companies like OpenAI are projecting an institutional understanding of humans as employees to be controlled, rather than full human beings
- The AI hype is a simulacrum, a discourse about a concept of AI that has become detached from the technical reality of AI systems like large language models (LLMs)
- LLMs are fluent but not truly knowledgeable, as they are trained on discourses about the world rather than the world itself
- Software developers are prone to adopting the institutional models of the world presented by AI companies, failing to see the discourses underlying these models
- The AI hype is millenarian, with constantly moving goalposts, as it is more about generating panic and discourse than achieving any real technological breakthrough
- The power and wealth of the influential people driving the AI hype means the hype can still have real consequences, even if it is detached from reality
Summaries
23 word summary
AI hype reflects capitalist control, not revolution. Companies seek AGI to dominate labor, perpetuate hierarchies. "AI" is a simulacrum used by the powerful.
45 word summary
The AI hype reflects a capitalist desire for control, not a technological revolution. Companies aim for artificial general intelligence to dominate labor, perpetuating social hierarchies. The "AI" discussed is a simulacrum, used by the powerful to generate discourse and panic, increasing their wealth and influence.
126 word summary
The AI hype is driven by the desire for power and control, not a genuine technological revolution. Companies like OpenAI and DeepMind aim to create artificial general intelligence (AGI) - a human-like intelligence that can outperform humans. However, their definition of AGI reflects the capitalist desire for complete control over labor, allowing them to perpetuate social hierarchies. The AI hype is a new chapter in the renegotiation of social practices, with powerful figures like Sam Altman consolidating control and reshaping industries. The "AI" discussed in the media is a simulacrum, a hyperreal representation detached from the technical reality. The power of the AI hype lies in its ability to generate discourse and panic, which can be leveraged by the powerful to increase their wealth and influence.
392 word summary
The AI Hype: A Critique of Power and Hyperreality
The AI hype is driven by the desire for power and control, rather than a genuine technological revolution. Companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and DeepMind are not just interested in large language models (LLMs), but in creating artificial general intelligence (AGI) - a human-like, general-purpose intelligence that can outperform humans in various tasks.
However, the definition of AGI espoused by these companies is not aligned with our intuitive understanding of intelligence. From an institutional perspective, they view AGI as a perfected employee - one that can be commanded and will obediently carry out tasks without question or emotion. This reflects the capitalist desire for complete control over labor, allowing them to neutralize workers as a political force and perpetuate existing social hierarchies.
The AI hype is not a revolution, but a new chapter in the renegotiation of social practices and relationships. Powerful figures like Sam Altman understand how to wield power within institutions. Altman's quest for venture funding is not just about advancing AI, but about consolidating control and reshaping the global semiconductor industry to serve the interests of capital.
The concept of AI has become detached from the technical reality of LLMs and other AI research. Philosopher Jean Baudrillard's concept of "hyperreality" explains this phenomenon. The "AI" discussed in the media is not the same as the actual technological developments, but a simulacrum - a representation that has taken on a life of its own, divorced from the underlying reality.
This hyperreal AI is not a real event, but a discourse about a discourse. The fear of an AGI takeover, the "tsunami coming for the world's jobs," and the panic within the Effective Altruism community are all part of this hyperreal AI narrative, eclipsing any meaningful definition of AI as a real, definable thing.
Software developers at these AI companies are prone to fits of hyperreality, often failing to see the distinction between the discourse about the world and the world itself. The AI hype is millenarian, with goalposts constantly moving, as LLMs become increasingly fluent but not truly knowledgeable.
Ultimately, the power of the AI hype lies in its ability to generate discourse and panic, which can then be leveraged by the world's most powerful people to increase their wealth and influence. Left unchallenged, the hype can still have very real consequences.
633 word summary
The AI Hype: A Critique of Power and Hyperreality
The AI hype is driven by the allure of power and control, rather than a genuine technological revolution. Companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and DeepMind are not just interested in large language models (LLMs), but in creating artificial general intelligence (AGI) - a human-like, general-purpose intelligence that can outperform humans in a wide range of tasks.
However, the definition of AGI espoused by these companies is not necessarily aligned with our intuitive understanding of intelligence. From an institutional perspective, these companies view AGI as a perfected employee - one that can be told what to do and will obediently carry out tasks without question or emotion. This reflects the capitalist desire for complete control over labor, allowing them to neutralize workers as a political force and perpetuate existing social hierarchies.
The AI hype is not a revolution, but rather a new chapter in the continuous renegotiation of social practices and relationships. Powerful figures like Sam Altman, the former president of Y Combinator, understand how to wield power within institutions. Altman's quest for trillions of dollars in venture funding is not just about advancing AI, but about consolidating control and reshaping the global semiconductor industry to serve the interests of capital.
The concept of AI has become detached from the technical reality of LLMs and other AI research. Philosopher Jean Baudrillard's concept of "hyperreality" helps explain this phenomenon. The "AI" that is hyped and discussed in the media is not the same as the actual technological developments happening in labs and companies. It has become a simulacrum - a representation that has taken on a life of its own, divorced from the underlying reality.
This hyperreal AI is not a real event, but rather a discourse about a discourse. The fear of an AGI takeover, the "tsunami coming for the world's jobs," and the panic within the Effective Altruism community are all part of this hyperreal AI narrative. These ideas have become the main event, eclipsing any meaningful definition of AI as a real, definable thing.
The software developers working at these AI companies are prone to fits of hyperreality themselves. Trained to rigidly codify and adopt the models of the world put forth by the institutions they serve, they often fail to see the distinction between the discourse about the world and the world itself. They see LLMs as the first general-purpose tool that can coherently fit the entire world, and they complain about a lack of data, believing that if they had the entire world in data form, their AI would be complete.
This will never happen. The AI hype is millenarian, with goalposts constantly moving. As LLMs become increasingly fluent but not truly knowledgeable, the companies will always find a new excuse - more data, more energy, more hardware - to keep the hype alive and the discourse constantly changing.
The power of the AI hype lies in its ability to generate discourse and panic, which can then be leveraged by the world's most powerful people, many of them billionaires, to increase their wealth and influence. Left unchallenged, the hype, as untethered from reality as it may seem, can still have very real consequences.
In conclusion, the AI hype is not a technological revolution, but rather a manifestation of the capitalist desire for control and power. It is a hyperreal discourse that has taken on a life of its own, obscuring the actual technical developments in AI research. Software developers, trapped in their own institutional mindsets, often fail to see the distinction between the discourse about the world and the world itself, contributing to the perpetuation of the hype. Ultimately, the AI hype is a battle for power, with the world's most influential figures seeking to consolidate their control over labor and society.