Self and Technology (IM 776)

Self is not universal, and it changes over time and situation. For an example: Cyberneticians came to a different notion of self, accessible from the outside, identified with feedback systems—an account of the self that emerged from Norbert Wiener’s engineering work on weapons systems during World War II. Today’s world, we see a new notion of the self-emerging; we start by modeling artificial intelligence on a conception of who we are, and then begin seeing ourselves ever more in our encounter with AI. Different ages have different concepts of self, defined by the contemporary availability of technology from stone age to present day modern world. The most fascinating thing is that all the technologies are triggered and discovered by ‘self’, and in the end it is that technology that rules us. Think about what happens when AI overrules human mind, the effects it creates in jobs and employment: We have invested billions in AI. For what reason? Jobs will be at risk when human works are completed by AI more efficiently and more productively. How do we be able to progress our “self” to challenge AI? Can we complete with AI in the future? If not, then how will the world looks like? Peter Galison talk about this brilliantly here.