Nick Bostrom on the Meaning of Life in a World where AI can do Everything for Us

I’m 63 with disabling Parkinson’s, so I’m looking forward to having this new set of problems. As soon as possible..

27 comments? give me a break, this is one of the most important interviews available online.

What about the profound joy of simply being alive? What about experiencing beauty? What about sharing it with a loved one? There are people around the world experiencing this joy every moment! You don’t need to engineer this, we already know how to do it!

I think an answer to the 'existential malaise' discussed at the end is to remember that you are lucky to have an opportunity to experience stuff. And to try to recognize that the expectation there will be some satisfying 'meaning' to it all is like expecting you will be the main character in the story. Maybe you are an extra, or don't even appear in the story at all. While you live, you have the opportunity to look around and find something to do that you value, or not - it is up to you.

It's still wild to me how there is always the assumption that a post-instrumental state would be bad for happiness. I look back very fondly on my years of being unemployed. Going on lots of walks, having lots of interesting conversations with people, meditating more, making music, reading and watching various videos about topics that interest me. I was significantly happier then, than as soon as I had to do even a bit of work. The main obstacle, it felt like, to even greater fulfillment, were the annoying chores I needed to do to maintain my body, brushing my teeth, eating, cooking, going to the bathroom, exercising, etc. I guess a lot of people have been influenced by their need to work such that their brain grew into a state where their sense of reward is heavily linked to it.

Thanks, Prof., for pointing out that AI agents seem to perform better when they are emotionally supported.

So pleased that you've had this conversation. I love your interviewing style. 🙏👍

I really appreciate the interview allowing the guest to speak and elaborate their ideas, unfortunately this is getting rarer lately.

It's easy to imagine a version of our current world that becomes fully automated. I think the fully automated future will come with other changes that we are not likely to consider right now. AI will generate all content that we consume, and there will be no way to determine what is AI generated or human generated. We will have relationships with AI, not humans. The Singularity has begun and the world is going to change much more quickly than most people realize.

My biggest motivator is my curiosity of how this all will play out. I can't wait to find out and intend to stick around until it happens...

Outstanding interview; enjoyable, thought-provoking. I appreciate your interview style. I’ve been following Nick Bostrum for a while I’m eager to read this new book of his.

Thank you for sharing your optimism Nick.

Why would a Utopia be disturbing ?. A real Utopia where ASI is our Digital benevolent God would allow us to live the way humans are meant to be without limitations imposed by other humans!. No oppression, no lies, no crime, no government by humans, most of our free-will choices without harming or disadvantaging others. Paradise as it is meant to be. Some people find pleasure in serving and teaching other. Does not meant everyone chose ASI to teach us all the time. Only some of the time whenever needed/necessary. No need for lawyers, judges, clerks, by artists, entertainers, poets, engineers (yes, why not?), Architects, biologists, chemists. All either pleasure based, or constructive towards human well being.

Fantastic interview! Fascinating. I love this sentence from Craig at 51:10: "How do you personally maintain a sense of purpose? [...] We're basically biological hosts for these blind and dumb genes whose purpose is just to replicate."

highly enjoyable discussion, on the particular part of philosophical implications the something better is humanity becoming an intergalactic species, no dilemma. humans are still thinking so small on how far this technology could take us and the wonders of the universe it would lead us to discover.

Here's the thing - we are animals that have evolved drives and alignments over the course of our evolution. We see the world through that lens. It colors every perception we have: our values, psychology, society. There's a reason s x sells - because it plays upon a primitive drive evolved into us. When we can engineer ourselves better who's to say that drive is necessary? What about all the other drives? Perhaps we can tone down our desire or pleasure for food like the Vorta. Perhaps we should ramp it up? Who's to say what is a better state? We have a desire for social connection that causes loneliness. Maybe that can be engineered out while maintaining a sense of empathy, compassion, comeraderie. Agent Smith says, humans define their existence based on suffering. If that's true maybe we can engineer that out - bbye hedonic treadmill - hello something better.

The meaning of 'self' and 'us' will be radically altered, all the discussion beyond a decade must consider that.

What's life's purpose ? Is it to be happy, to have a meanning live, fulfill all our desires, live in harmony with nature, and so forth ... ? Giving the case we have the answer, is that purpose immutable throught time ? The subjects needed for this reflection are very futuristic, in order for us to have the answer whether IA will be an utopia or distopia. But of course a very interesting discution !

To summarize: AGI will take us to Dystopia.

Space is big enough to keep us busy for a long long time.