Comment by imeanwhatdoikno | Hacker News Reader

Comment by imeanwhatdoikno | Hacker News Reader

imeanwhatdoikno

A hypothetical... suppose AI "solves" (for your preferred definition of "solve") your field and what you used to do becomes useless or near-useless. But you still enjoy doing it and you also get UBI that provides for comfortable lifestyle regardless of what you choose to do.

Questions: (1) Do you still weep for what has transpired? (2) Do you continue to do what you used to do (with optional AI assistance)?

For me: (1) no, (2) yes and I think the same would be true for most people. So I can't help but believe that most of the anguish about AI is far more about a direct economic hit to people's livelihoods than it is about the impact to their respective fields. Which is more than reasonable. But then why not frame the conversation that way instead of beating around the bush?

For many people, the answer to 1 is yes. You maybe happy with our future where we putter around aimlessly as consumers, but some people want to live in a world where they can at least try to do something that matters. Virtually every professional mathematician is motivated by personally making a permanent contribution to human knowledge, no matter how small.

I understand that sentiment, but I don't think it really counts if the only reason you were able to do something first is that others were forbidden from using an AI that would have done it faster.

There is no reality in which everyone gets their basic needs (food, roof, health) without a job.

heck, we have the resources to that now but we don't do it.

We do for seniors, who are much more expensive than average due to medical costs. In a hypothetical future where AI is much more productive than humans we could easily extend that to everyone.

no we don't? Also varies massively between countries. UBI talk is just distracting the masses from the impending change of paradigm. UBI is basically Blisstonia.

This was a very interesting read, from 2003.

https://karmak.org/archive/2003/12/manna/manna1.htm

I’d be okay with UBI and hobby intellectual work for the rest of my life. But I’m not a mathematician. Many of them probably have more of their identities tied up with their cognitive abilities and social standing.

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