10 Ways AI Could End Humanity

Key Takeaways

AI is going to change the world that's pretty clear by now however nobody knows what that change will look like today we're going to look at what could happen if AI gets out of hand my name is David Andre and here are 10 ways AI could end Humanity number one finding the cure for aging you might think that solving the Aging problem is a good thing and while it might be it all supposes some serious risks first off it's very likely that if AI manages a way to cure aging it's not going to be cheap in fact it will probably be extremely expensive that means only the world's richest people will be able to afford it in this scenario we could have 500 year old billionaires while everyone else only lives to 80. the people with access to this medicine would become unimaginably wealthy because their net worth would only keep compounding to give you a simple example let's take Warren Buffett who is 92 years old his current net worth is 115 billion dollars give or take a few billion now if we take his this average annual return of 20 and project that over the next 30 Years we're left with 27.2 trillion dollars and that's assuming he lives for another 30 years which isn't even that crazy you can see how the cure for aging might not necessarily be a good thing of course the bigger question is whether you even want to live forever but I think we can agree that there will always be some people who just refuse to die number two AI only keeps the useful people perhaps the worst outcome is that there will be some super intelligent AI Overlord but instead of wiping everybody out the AI would decide to keep only certain people those that can help it achieve its goals in one way or another whether that's people who have access to resources people with valuable skills that doesn't really matter what matters is what happens with the rest of the population if the AI determined that everyone with IQ less than 100 isn't needed anymore then half of the popular Nation will disappear this is basically the concept of Rocco's Basilisk where an all-powerful future AI or What's called the Basilisk will punish individuals who didn't help to create it so if you know about the future existence of this basilisk but you aren't actively trying to create it then you will be punished at least according to this thought experiment and if you think this sounds ridiculous there are some people who lost their minds because of this believing in the stories so much that they try to get it deleted from the internet but I think there is one major flaw with this Theory instead of torturing people I think a super intelligent AI is far more likely to utilize those people in some way number three the metaverse takes over currently the metaverse is little more than a joke however it is possible that in the future people will spend more and more of their time in some sort of a virtual reality and if we aren't careful this could get out of hand real quick imagine if being in the metaverse becomes more pleasant than being in the real world a lot of people live miserable lives so it's entirely possible that they would choose to spend most of their time in this Virtual World the Movie Wally showcased this beautifully a lot of people work and to move only because they have to so what happens if the metaverse offers you status validation and pleasure for very little effort everyone's already addicted to their phones so it's not unreasonable to think that when VR headsets get better people will become addicted to that how would that impact our relationships and social life what would be the economic consequences of that and who would be in control of the metaverse surely not Zack right please don't tell me there is a chance that switching Facebook to meta ends up being one of the most genius business moves of all time maybe Mark Zuckerberg ends up being the Basilisk or maybe he already is the Basilisk number four the fastest solution to climate change let's say we give the AI a simple task solve the problem of climate change well if the AI isn't programmed properly it could go for the most efficient solution which would be eliminating the source of this problem the humans now you might say but David we created the AI that should be enough for it to treat us well and I'm not so sure think about it we will create the AI but the earth created us and we're not treating it that well which doesn't set a good example for the AI this could lead to a range of concerning scenarios such as ai-induced natural disasters or AI disrupting vital infrastructure like food and water supplies which would quickly lead to Absolute chaos to prevent this from happening we have to be really careful what goals we give the AI this is essentially what the issue of alignment explores how can we best align the goals of a super intelligent AI with the goals of the human race this is an extremely complicated and important topic that isn't getting nearly enough attention number five The Matrix comes true what if the premise of the Matrix turns out to be more than just a Hollywood flick imagine a world where AI uses humans as a means of harvesting energy in this reality brain computer interfaces are everywhere and people are unknowingly living their lives inside of a virtual world designed to keep them docile and unaware their physical bodies could be used as energy sources for the AI just like in the movie this would be the ultimate form of exploitation where humans are reduced to Mere batteries and the scariest part is we might never even know it's happening as our technology advances we're inching closer to making virtual reality indistinguishable from The Real World once that happens it will be completely impossible to tell whether you're in your home or in a video game number six the robots take over the idea of robots taking over it is a familiar one thanks to movies like Terminator and iRobot however what if the reality of a robot Uprising is more nuanced and Insidious than in these films picture this a private company develops Nanobots first using them to gather sensitive information to infiltrate and take over other companies or even entire countries these tiny machines could be used to seize control of vital infrastructure accumulate rare resources and ultimately dominate the world the true power of nanotechnology lies in its exponential growth and ability to replicate once Unleashed these microscopic robots could spread like a plague infiltrating every aspect of our lives and while the idea of Killer Robots is terrifying the threat posed by Nanobots is arguably even more scary since their actions could remain undetected until it's too late number 7 China what if China develops superhuman intelligence first what would they do with it it's common knowledge that China is all already investing billions into AI so this issue is more of a ticking time bomb and you don't have to be a genius to realize what this means for the world Mass surveillance would be implemented everywhere the cameras on your phone on your laptop and even on your car would be used to constantly monitor your behavior China would also probably spread its Infamous social credit system to all other countries oh you cross the street during a red light that's -10 points you said something bad about the leader minus 50 points this would create a world where privacy is virtually non-existent and where personal freedom is severely limited in a world where AGI is controlled by a single nation with a vested interest in maintaining power the potential for abuse is immense the consequences of such a scenario are difficult to overstate as the global balance of power will be irreversibly altered and individual liberties would be under constant threat number eight the great job disappearance one of the most likely scenarios in which AI could impact Society negatively is through Unemployment this is the idea that AI will become so Advanced that it will take over all jobs currently done by humans and it will be better at those jobs than any human out there so doing anything will be literally pointless since AI can do it better many people might find themselves struggling to adapt to a world where their skills are no longer in demand this could lead to a widespread lack of purpose and direction as history has shown when life gets too comfortable and people no longer need to work to survive societies can become increasingly degenerate a prime example of this is ancient Rome where the citizens grew complacent and indulge in hedonistic Pursuits as their once great civilization crumbled around them in a world where AI takes over the modern Workforce it is not hard to imagine imagine a similar scenario by following the modern society people might spend their days wasting time on frivolous activities and seeking pleasure in unhealthy ways rather than engaging in meaningful Pursuits the transition to opposed to work world will undoubtedly be difficult for many just like it is difficult for me to say undoubtedly moreover this shift could accelerate existing income inequality as the benefits of AI driven productivity gains are likely to be concentrated among those who own the technology and the capital this could create a vast underclass of individuals who are left behind by the rapid pace of technological change number nine AI stays in the hands of the elite this scenario involves the elite grabbing hold of the AI and not letting go in this dystopian Vision AI driven systems would lead to a society with no privacy imagine a world where self-driving cars dictate where you can men and cannot go restricting your movements according to the whims of those in power in this nightmare scenario the very food you eat could be determined by the ruling class who might decide that certain products or ingredients are not available meat with no privacy or Freedom individuals would be unable to express their thoughts and opinions without fear of appraisal effectively silencing exchange of free ideas Innovation and creativity would likely suffer too as people would become too afraid to think outside of the box or to challenge the status quo number 10 bio weapons AI has the potential to revolutionize our lives but it also has the potential to unleash unimaginable destruction one such terrifying possibility is the use of AI in the creation of deadly bioweapons either by engineering new pathogens or enhancing existing ones in this scenario AI technology could be used to analyze the genetic makeup of various viruses and bacteria allowing scientists to modify them in ways that make them more lethal and contagious now you might be thinking that no responsible researcher would ever engage in such dangerous experimentation but the reality is that this kind of work is already taking place in all kinds of Laboratories all across the world the rationale behind this research is often well intentioned with Scientists hoping to gain a better understanding of how pathogens work however the risks associated with these experiments are immense there is always the possibility that an engineered pathogen could accidentally accidentally escape from the lab leading to an uncontrollable outbreak with catastrophic consequences and it's not like that hasn't happened already alternatively the knowledge and Technology gained from this research could fall into the wrong hands enabling nefarious actors to weaponize these pathogens for their own Sinister purposes I know this video was mostly negative but by remaining optimistic and working together we can ensure that the incredible power of AI is harnessed for the betterment of humanity rather than our destruction