Many of the biggest companies in the world are racing to build superintelligence — artificial intelligence that far exceeds the capability of the best humans across all domains. This will not merely be one more invention. The magnitude of the transformation will be beyond that of the printing press, or the steam engine, or electricity; more on a par with the evolution of Homo sapiens, or of life itself.

Yet almost no one has articulated a positive vision for what comes after superintelligence. Few people are even asking, “What if we succeed?” Even fewer have tried to answer.[1]

The speed and scale of the transition means we can’t just muddle through. Without a positive vision, we risk defaulting to whatever emerges from market and geopolitical dynamics, with little reason to think that the result will be anywhere close to as good as it could be. We need a north star, but we have none.

This essay is the first in a series that discusses what a good north star might be. I begin by describing a concept that I find helpful in this regard:

Viatopia: an intermediate state of society that is on track [...]

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First published:

Source:

Linkpost URL:
https://www.forethought.org/research/viatopia

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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.