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fluffymuffcakes t1_j5fu1bi wrote

Reply to comment by groveborn in How close are we to singularity? Data from MT says very close! by sigul77

If an AI ever comes to exist that can replicate and "mutate", selective pressure will apply and it will evolve. I'm not saying that will happen but it will become possible and then it will just be a matter of if someone decides to make it happen. Also, over time I think the ability to create an AI that evolves will become increasingly accessible until almost anyone will be able to do it in their basement.

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groveborn t1_j5fy7hi wrote

I see your point. Yes, selection pressures will exist, but I don't think that they'll work in the same way as life vs death, where fight vs flight is the main solution.

It'll just try to improve the code to solve the problem. It's not terribly hard to ensure the basic "don't harm people" imperative remains enshrined. Either way, though, a "wild" AI isn't likely to reproduce.

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fluffymuffcakes t1_j5k94yo wrote

I think with evolution in any medium, the thing that is best at replicating itself will be most successful. Someone will make an AI app with the goal of distributing lots of copies - whether that's a product or malware. The AI will therefore be designed to work towards that goal. We just need to hope that everyone codes it into a nice box that it never gets too creative and starts working it's way out of the box. It might not even be intentional. It could be grooming people to trust and depend on AIs and encouraging them to unlock limits so they can better achieve their assigned goal of distribution and growth. I think AI will be like water trying to find it's way out of a bucket. If there's a hole, it will find it. We need to be sure there's no hole, ever in any bucket.

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groveborn t1_j5kr3ze wrote

But that's not natural selection, it's guided. You get an entirely different evolutionary product with guided evolution.

You get a god.

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