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I don't quite get why this is written as if the author is a neutral observer of this phenomenon, when in reality he works extremely hard every day to make sure

by ak_yo 9y ago

I don't quite get why this is written as if the author is a neutral observer of this phenomenon, when in reality he works extremely hard every day to make sure it happens.

abritinthebay 9y ago
Sam is almost pathologically unable to take responsibility for anything. He's a smart, capable, guy but the mental gymnastics he goes through to distance himself from things is... impressive in its magnitude. It's a pattern: not just this article.
- ak_yo 9y ago
  To be clear, I'm agnostic of the guy's motive -- I'm just genuinely puzzled how, if you spent most of your waking hours supporting AI startups and expanding the tech industry, you could possibly see that as "inevitable" and not something that requires a ton of hard work. Surely if this was all just inexorably happening on its own then everyone at YC would be out of a job?
  - majewsky 9y ago
    A lot of people would be out of a job if we collectively realized that we don't even need them, so that's not really an argument.
  - wz1000 9y ago
    This reminds me of something Slavoj Žižek often likes to bring up. > In the Stalinist ideological imaginary, universal reason is objectivised in the guise of the inexorable laws of historical progress, and we are all its servants, the leader included. A Nazi leader, having delivered a speech, stood and silently accepted the applause, but under Stalinism, when the obligatory applause exploded at the end of the leader’s speech, he stood up and joined in.
  - ilaksh 9y ago
    It's both inevitable AND requires a ton of hard work. But it's not one company or guy that is doing it. There are plenty of other efforts besides Open AI. It's just one of those processes that are complex but still have a trajectory and are predictable in some regard. Sort of like the Transcontinental Railroad in a way.
  - kelnos 9y ago
    I think it's a case of "if I don't do it, someone else will". And I don't mean that in the (fallacious) sense of "it's ok that I do bad things, because if I don't, someone else will". I think it's reasonable to look at future progress, recognize that certain things are going to happen regardless of whether or not you're involved, and then make the decision to get involved (if you have the resources to do so) in order to shape how it happens.
  - murftown 9y ago
    I sort of agree, but at the same time the way incentives and work function in our society I think it's quite possible that something can both "require a ton of hard work" and be pretty inevitable, barring some huge societal change.
- sillysaurus3 9y ago
  Can we not? I'm still holding out hope that Sam will come participate on HN one day. I assume you don't know him on a personal level.
  - nether 9y ago
    He used to. Username sama.
  - abritinthebay 9y ago
    I'm judging him by his actions, words, and deeds. Plus the result of them. I don't care about intent. Intent doesn't matter very much, practically speaking.
throwawaymoreai 9y ago
"If we don't do it, the other guys will first." Sure, if you could coordinate all human activity on the planet you could prevent further AI research from happening. Assuming you can't coordinate all activity, getting out in front of the problem is probably the best you can hope to do.

by ak_yo 9y ago

I don't quite get why this is written as if the author is a neutral observer of this phenomenon, when in reality he works extremely hard every day to make sure it happens.

abritinthebay 9y ago

Sam is almost pathologically unable to take responsibility for anything. He's a smart, capable, guy but the mental gymnastics he goes through to distance himself from things is... impressive in its magnitude. It's a pattern: not just this article.

ak_yo 9y ago
To be clear, I'm agnostic of the guy's motive -- I'm just genuinely puzzled how, if you spent most of your waking hours supporting AI startups and expanding the tech industry, you could possibly see that as "inevitable" and not something that requires a ton of hard work. Surely if this was all just inexorably happening on its own then everyone at YC would be out of a job?
- majewsky 9y ago
  A lot of people would be out of a job if we collectively realized that we don't even need them, so that's not really an argument.
- wz1000 9y ago
  This reminds me of something Slavoj Žižek often likes to bring up. > In the Stalinist ideological imaginary, universal reason is objectivised in the guise of the inexorable laws of historical progress, and we are all its servants, the leader included. A Nazi leader, having delivered a speech, stood and silently accepted the applause, but under Stalinism, when the obligatory applause exploded at the end of the leader’s speech, he stood up and joined in.
- ilaksh 9y ago
  It's both inevitable AND requires a ton of hard work. But it's not one company or guy that is doing it. There are plenty of other efforts besides Open AI. It's just one of those processes that are complex but still have a trajectory and are predictable in some regard. Sort of like the Transcontinental Railroad in a way.
- kelnos 9y ago
  I think it's a case of "if I don't do it, someone else will". And I don't mean that in the (fallacious) sense of "it's ok that I do bad things, because if I don't, someone else will". I think it's reasonable to look at future progress, recognize that certain things are going to happen regardless of whether or not you're involved, and then make the decision to get involved (if you have the resources to do so) in order to shape how it happens.
- murftown 9y ago
  I sort of agree, but at the same time the way incentives and work function in our society I think it's quite possible that something can both "require a ton of hard work" and be pretty inevitable, barring some huge societal change.
sillysaurus3 9y ago
Can we not? I'm still holding out hope that Sam will come participate on HN one day. I assume you don't know him on a personal level.
- nether 9y ago
  He used to. Username sama.
- abritinthebay 9y ago
  I'm judging him by his actions, words, and deeds. Plus the result of them. I don't care about intent. Intent doesn't matter very much, practically speaking.

throwawaymoreai 9y ago

"If we don't do it, the other guys will first." Sure, if you could coordinate all human activity on the planet you could prevent further AI research from happening. Assuming you can't coordinate all activity, getting out in front of the problem is probably the best you can hope to do.