The idea that Artificial Intelligence (AI) machines should have any moral status of their own or could one day become conscious is a sci-fi fantasy. Ethical concerns about the use of AI in fields like healthcare and finance are legitimate. But we should not worry about conscious AI suffering, because machines are not, and will never be, conscious writes Tim Crane. Read Thomas Metzinger's original article here.
The recent opening of an Institute for Ethics in AI at the University of Oxford is decisive proof, if any were needed, that AI ethics is now ‘A Thing’. The Oxford institute will address ethical questions about the use of AI in (e.g.) healthcare, finance, the law, in changing the way in which we relate to work — and many other things besides. AI is now becoming so dominant in our lives (whether we realise it or not) and its ethical implications in all these areas are not well-understood. It is good news that philosophers and others are addressing these questions seriously.
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Why we should worry about computer suffering
By Thomas Metzinger
However, it is common to find discussions of AI these days addressing even more ambitious questions. For example: what should we do if the machines become smarter than us? What happens if AI machines develop their own values, and these values conflict with ours? How should we treat these AI machines if they become conscious? What should their moral status be?
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