AI Agency and Wellbeing Workshop
The workshop explores the following questions:
- Can a large language model be a cognitive and linguistic agent (in the way that humans are agents)?
- Can there be such a thing as AI well-being?
- If the answers are yes, what are the implications?
Date: November 22, 2023
Title: Coopting Artificial Achievement
Speaker: Dr Nate Sharadin, The University of Hong Kong
Abstract:
Very capable machine learning models are high-achieving: their accomplishments include predicting the structure of proteins to atomic accuracy, playing Go at world-champion levels, producing wondrous visual art, writing complex computer code, the list goes on. The breadth and magnitude of these (and future) artificial achievements has struck writers, artists, Go players, and even some philosophers as cause for concern, or sorrow. In this paper, I offer a counterpoint in the form of an encomium for artificial achievement. Drawing on the basic account of achievement accepted by a wide range of philosophers working on the nature (and value) of achievement, I argue that a boom in artificial achievement can be expected to generate a boom in nonrivalrous, nonexcludable value, i.e., a boom in public value. A sudden increase in public value is something we should celebrate.