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If the law is true, and quantum computing is the key enabler of AGI, then the law is either the best or worst news in human history. And we may be living in the

If the law is true, and quantum computing is the key enabler of AGI, then the law is either the best or worst news in human history. And we may be living in the final generations of our species. Not to be dramatic. I'm kinda hoping that Nevin is an inferior prophet to Moore.

smitty1e 7y ago
I fail to see why the advent of qbits has to be any more apocalyptic than the transistor. "...there shall, in that time, be rumors of things going astray, errrm, and there shall be a great confusion as to where things really are, and nobody will really know where lieth those little things wi - with the sort of raffia work base that has an attachment. At this time, a friend shall lose his friend's hammer and the young shall not know where lieth the things possessed by their fathers that their fathers put there only just the night before, about eight o'clock." https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079470/quotes?item=qt0979932 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079470/quotes?item=qt0979932
- hirundo 7y ago
  If Nevin's law is true, then qbit computational power will grow at a doubly exponentially rate rather than simply exponentially as in Moore's law of bit pushers. That alone is apocalyptic. But that's not the qbit's only trick. They have a talent for pattern recognition that bits can't match, and pattern recognition is the key to autonomous agents. For good or ill, such agents have the power to leverage human will enormously. That has a high potential for apocalypse, and doubly exponential qbits would make that happen much sooner.
theemathas 7y ago
Unfortunately, you can't just throw any computer program into a quantum computer and make it fast. You need to design a quantum algorithm, which will make the quantum computer faster, but only when solving this one specific problem. Not many such quantum algorithms have been invented yet. Therefore, it is not obvious whether quantum computing will affect AI at all. Perhaps someone will figure out a new quantum algorithm for AI, but I don't think that's very likely to happen soon.

smitty1e 7y ago

I fail to see why the advent of qbits has to be any more apocalyptic than the transistor. "...there shall, in that time, be rumors of things going astray, errrm, and there shall be a great confusion as to where things really are, and nobody will really know where lieth those little things wi - with the sort of raffia work base that has an attachment. At this time, a friend shall lose his friend's hammer and the young shall not know where lieth the things possessed by their fathers that their fathers put there only just the night before, about eight o'clock." https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079470/quotes?item=qt0979932 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079470/quotes?item=qt0979932

hirundo 7y ago
If Nevin's law is true, then qbit computational power will grow at a doubly exponentially rate rather than simply exponentially as in Moore's law of bit pushers. That alone is apocalyptic. But that's not the qbit's only trick. They have a talent for pattern recognition that bits can't match, and pattern recognition is the key to autonomous agents. For good or ill, such agents have the power to leverage human will enormously. That has a high potential for apocalypse, and doubly exponential qbits would make that happen much sooner.

theemathas 7y ago

Unfortunately, you can't just throw any computer program into a quantum computer and make it fast. You need to design a quantum algorithm, which will make the quantum computer faster, but only when solving this one specific problem. Not many such quantum algorithms have been invented yet. Therefore, it is not obvious whether quantum computing will affect AI at all. Perhaps someone will figure out a new quantum algorithm for AI, but I don't think that's very likely to happen soon.