Beijing, May 5 (ZXS) -- Chinese and foreign experts solve the problem of "AI revolution and civilization evolution"
Authors: Wen Longjie, Cui Bailu, Xu Huangguan
What is the future of artificial intelligence? Will people be replaced by artificial intelligence? What are the similarities and differences between the understanding of the AI revolution in the East and the West? The second "East-West Think Tank" themed forum, hosted by China News Service, was held in Beijing on May 5, and Chinese and foreign experts from different fields conducted dialogues on "AI Revolution and Civilization Evolution".
On May 5, the second "East-West Think Tank" theme forum of China News Service was held in Beijing, and a number of Chinese and foreign experts discussed "AI revolution and civilization evolution". The picture shows the roundtable dialogue session of the forum. Photo by China News Agency reporter Tian Yuhao
Worry, good or bad?
Today, human society is ushering in a boom in the development of artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence applications quickly "break the circle", robots, ChatGPT, AI painting, AI singers, etc., drive the development of the industry and bring convenience to people's lives.
The picture shows Yang Huilin, former vice president of Chinese Minmin University and Dahua Chair Professor, delivering a keynote speech at the forum. Photo by China News Agency reporter Tian Yuhao
Yang Huilin, former vice president of Chinese Minmin University and Dahua Chair Professor, pointed out that no one can refuse the convenience that AI brings to people, and the problem is how to use and utilize AI.
The picture shows Tian Feng, founding president of SenseTime Intelligent Industry Research Institute, giving a keynote speech at the forum. Photo by China News Agency reporter Tian Yuhao
Tian Feng, founding president of SenseTime Intelligent Industry Research Institute, pointed out that artificial intelligence is moving from "perceptual intelligence" and "cognitive intelligence" to "embodied intelligence", and the next era of artificial intelligence may have a sentient hardware body and continue to develop in the form of embodied intelligence.
The picture shows Arthur Abu-Mustafa, professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the California Institute of Technology and an expert in artificial intelligence, giving a keynote speech at the forum via video. Photo by China News Agency reporter Tian Yuhao
Arthur Abu-Mustafa, an expert in artificial intelligence and professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the California Institute of Technology, said that the topic of artificial intelligence is "sometimes exciting, sometimes worrying", one of the reasons for the concern is that artificial intelligence has recently become more and more "human-like" and "we didn't expect machines to do this".
"In many cases, they are smarter than humans", "sometimes take over completely, sometimes subordinate to humans". Arthur Abu-Mustafa pointed out that some even argue that AI systems will become smarter in a "spiral" and that humans will be completely marginalized, "from this point of view, AI is clearly a threat to human survival."
The picture shows Professor Hu Yong of the School of Journalism and Communication of Peking University giving a keynote speech at the forum. Photo by China News Agency reporter Tian Yuhao
Something, same or different?
Human beings seem to have come to the eve of the "AI revolution", the trend of human-machine symbiosis is becoming more and more prominent, artificial intelligence will become a companion to promote the process of human civilization, or will it eventually become a rebel to reduce the dimensionality of human beings?
On these issues, Eastern and Western cultures have given different interpretations and enlightenments. Hu Yong, a professor at Peking University's School of Journalism and Communication, combed through the reflections of Western philosophers and pointed out that in complex data analysis, language translation, decision-making, reasoning and other tasks, computers may be comparable to or even surpass human intelligence and ability. Hence the emergence of a group of "extinctionists", people who want to replace human life with robots.
"I call these people the canonical thinkers of modern science, the descendants of Bacon and Descartes, and the development of modern science to this point has finally revealed its true nature, that is, the new power of nature, including the new force of human life, means that everything that human beings can be transformed, replaced, and abolished." Hu Yong pointed out that it is necessary to be vigilant against the possible alienation of human beings, and deal with the problem of "possible alienation of superhumans, post-humans and humans" brought about by artificial intelligence through the reflection of human nature.
The picture shows Liu Yuedi, a researcher at the Institute of Philosophy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, giving a keynote speech at the forum. Photo by China News Agency reporter Tian Yuhao
Liu Yuedi, a researcher at the Institute of Philosophy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, believes that thinking on this issue can "go back to Confucius." He pointed out that among the ethical principles proposed by Confucius, "loyalty" is in an important position, and "the loyalty of robots to humans is the most basic principle"; The second is "forgiveness", do not do unto others what you do not want to be done to others; Again "benevolence", in what sense the robot may have benevolence and benevolence.
"In terms of artificial intelligence, Chinese can give a lot of reasonable answers, which the West ignores." Liu Yuedi pointed out that Mencius talked about the "four ends", including compassion, shame, concession, and right and wrong, for example, when he sees a child climbing forward, and there is a well in front of him, anyone will want to save him, which is compassion. If the robot does not have this emotion, will it save?
Liu Yuedi, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: In the face of artificial intelligence, we must guard the bottom limit of human emotions Source: China News Network
Turn, stop or go?
As a new thing, artificial intelligence has developed to today, bringing new technologies and new products, and its rapid iteration and development has also spawned people's reflection on AI. Hu Yong believes that artificial intelligence has reached a turning point, and now is a good time to pause and evaluate.
Liu Yuedi pointed out that humans have emotions, but machines cannot, "machines can only simulate emotions, but cannot generate emotions like humans." Tian Feng believes that one of the gaps between artificial intelligence and humans lies in whether they have "critical thinking".
Should I move on? Tian Feng said that in a sense, "people can no longer go back", science and technology are making up for life, "the true enlightenment of human civilization from the current era of human-machine common intelligence, human beings will use knowledge engineering tools based on large models to think and explore the world." ”
It's important to keep the bottom line in the face of technology. Liu Yuedi said that to solve the "emotional and intellectual paradox brought by AI", "we must guard the bottom line of rational intelligence and the bottom line of human emotions." Tian Feng put forward the ethical values of "people-oriented, technology-controllable and sustainable development".
The deeper you think, the more science and technology questions return to the humanistic theme. Arthur Abu-Mustafa argues that the focus is on whether artificial intelligence has "desires" and that "intelligence is an ability, while domination is a desire, which appears in us for biological reasons".
Yang Huilin pointed out that "most of the problems of artificial intelligence discussed now appear before artificial intelligence, which is essentially a problem of people themselves." Hu Yong said that to prevent the "loss of people" caused by AI progress, at the same time, we must be wary of AI aggravating world inequality, and AI is used in wars and other deep-seated issues, the future world, or the need for "international conventions on artificial intelligence". (End)