The apocalypse isn’t coming. We must resist cynicism and fear about AI | Stephen Marche

Remember when WeWork would kill commercial real estate? Crypto would abolish banks? The metaverse would end meeting people in real life?

In the field of artificial intelligence, doomerism is as natural as an echo. Every development in the field, or to be more precise every development that the public notices, immediately generates an apocalyptic reaction. The fear is natural enough; it comes partly from the lizard-brain part of us that resists whatever is new and strange, and partly from the movies, which have instructed us, for a century, that artificial intelligence will take the form of an angry god that wants to destroy all humanity.

The recent public letter calling for a six-month ban on AI lab work will not have the slightest measurable effect on the development of artificial intelligence, it goes without saying. But it has changed the conversation: every discussion about artificial intelligence must begin with the possibility of total human extinction. It's silly and, worse, it's an alibi, a distraction from the real dangers technology presents.