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Why AI is still dumb and not scary at all (pt. 1)

(tejo.substack.com)
63 points tejonutella | 6 comments | 08 Mar 25 21:25 UTC | HN request time: 2.121s | source | bottom
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ed-209 ◴[08 Mar 25 22:18 UTC] No.43304078[source]▶
A gun is not smart or magical but is nevertheless a powerful tool that can be scary depending on who is holding it. Accordingly, I worry less about my occupation and more about the moral character of those wielding it. Further i worry about "smart" people who have not been acquainted with the dark side of human nature facilitating bad actors.
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wat10000 ◴[08 Mar 25 22:58 UTC] No.43304352[source]▶
A gun’s purpose isn’t to be smart. The gun equivalent of this post would be “Why guns still aren’t very good at killing” and that would be a serious problem for guns if that were true.
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1. darkerside ◴[08 Mar 25 23:08 UTC] No.43304435[source]▶
They're not good at killing. They do nothing in their own. People are very good at killing using guns. The analogy is actually perfect.
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2. aldanor ◴[08 Mar 25 23:21 UTC] No.43304526[source]▶
When a toddler can pull the trigger and kill someone, you may argue guns are pretty good at killing. Key point being, people don't have to be good at guns to be good at killing with guns. Pulling the trigger is accessible to anyone.
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3. wat10000 ◴[09 Mar 25 00:24 UTC] No.43304915[source]▶
What’s the AI equivalent to point a gun, pull the trigger, and it kills the target? Something, something, and it’s smart, what are the somethings?
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4. darkerside ◴[09 Mar 25 03:15 UTC] No.43305839[source]▶
How often does that actually happen? It's only when a fun owner was irresponsible, leaving a loaded gun in an accessible place for the toddler.

Similarly, AI can easily sound smart when directed to do so. It typically doesn't actually take action unless authorized by a person. We're entering a time where people may soon be willing to give that permission in a more permanent basis, which I would argue is still the fault of the person making that decision.

Whether you choose to have AI identify illegal immigrants, or you simply decide all immigrants are illegal, the deciding is made by you the human, not by a machine.

5. bumby ◴[09 Mar 25 03:20 UTC] No.43305868[source]▶
Not the OP, but my best guess is it’s an alignment problem, just like gun killing what the owner is not intending to. So the power of AI to make decisions that are out of alignment with society’s needs are the “something, something’s.” As in the above healthcare examples, it can be efficient at denying healthcare claims. The lack of good validation can obfuscate alignment with bad incentives.
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6. wat10000 ◴[09 Mar 25 04:40 UTC] No.43306298{3}[source]▶
I guess it depends on what you see as the purpose of AI. If the purpose is to be smart, it’s not doing very well. (Yet?) If the purpose is to deflect responsibility, it’s working great.