This episode considers the speed, extent, and dangers of the AI technological revolution. The dreams of radical transhumanism depend on this transformation. I use 2 sources, both highly recommended reading:

1. Megathreats (2022) by Nouriel Roubini especially ch8.

2. The Coming Wave (2023 ) by Mustafa Suleyman.

The episode ends with a warning dream of mine about AI …

An expedition of Western soldiers in India stumbled on an unusual tomb. It is like a big room which is guarded by a living demon, whom the soldiers decide to execute perhaps by burning. They walk backwards to the place of execution while the blue demon walks forward in a sinister, elegant kind of dance.

A cautious interpretation is offered.

I review the history of the relationship of technology and human consciousness and explore the implications of the division of the brain into a right and left hemisphere. AI is not only going to take over most jobs in the economy, it will take over our consciousness and we are surrendering it willingly. At root, having been convinced of the idea we have no soul and that we are simply code, we are wide open for takeover by forces, many malevolent, we might otherwise be able to withstand. And if I am asked what is the soul I reply:

The essence of this precious life

The seed upon the flower

The scent within a perfume

The light that is a star

The freedom of the wild west wind

The mist on mountain side

The thought before you think

She knows you from inside.

The sweetness of the desert breeze

You can’t hold in your hand

She’s like the waters of the Nile

She comes from other lands.

Transhumanism believes in a transition of Homo sapiens into a trans-human and even post-biological state made possible by accelerating technological progress, for example Artificial General Intelligence. The recent emergence of Large Language Models (LLMs) not only push the boundaries of AI but may also play their part in the Transhumanist enterprise. In reply to the question what are the dangers of such technologies to human consciousness, Gemini, one of the well known LLMs, gave a very frank and disturbing reply. All is revealed in the episode!