by Mike James

Recently, Geoffrey Hinton, known by some as the godfather of AI, announced his retirement from Google. Hinton, 75 years old, pioneered research on neural networks and deep learning. Neural networks are computer systems that attempt to mimic the neural networks that our brains use. It is a type of machine learning process known as deep learning that uses interconnected nodes like human neurons in a layered structure that attempts to mimic our brains. Hinton, a British-Canadian cognitive psychologist, and computer scientist, told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) that chatbots could soon overtake the amount of data a human brain holds.

“Right now, what we’re seeing is things like GPT-4 eclipses a person in the amount of general knowledge it has, and it eclipses them by a long way. In terms of reasoning, it’s not as good, but it does already do simple reasoning,” Hinton said. He continued, “And given the rate of progress, we expect things to get better quite fast. So, we need to worry about that.” Hinton added, “I’ve come to the conclusion that the kind of intelligence we’re developing is very different from the intelligence we have. “We’re biological systems and these are digital systems. And the big difference is that with digital systems, you have many copies of the same set of weights, the same model of the world.

“And all these copies can learn separately but share their knowledge instantly. So, it’s as if you had 10,000 people and whenever one person learnt something, everybody automatically knew it. And that’s how these chatbots can know so much more than any one person.”

Hinton is not the only one with concerns about where AI may lead us. Elon Musk has commented recently in the news that we may need to take a pause in AI development. I find this interesting coming from Musk due to the work at the company he co-founded called Neuralink. Neuralink recently won Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to conduct its first-in-human clinical study. Just what will Neuralink be studying?

The company is creating a brain implant called the Link, which hopes to help people with paralysis control external technologies using only neural signals. This means patients with severe degenerative diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) could someday regain their ability to communicate with family and friends by moving cursors and typing with their minds.

Neuralink is just one of an emerging number of companies known as a brain-computer interface (BCI). BCI is a system that deciphers brain signals and translates them into commands for external technologies. The BCI at Neuralink will require patients to undergo brain surgery. Its system centers around something called the Link. It is a small circular implant that processes and translates neural signals. The Link is connected to a series of thin, flexible threads inserted right into the brain tissue, where they detect neural signals. Patients with a Link will learn to control it using the Neuralink app. These individuals will then be able to control external mice and keyboards through a Bluetooth connection, according to the company’s website.

The BCI industry hopes to help people suffering from paralysis, blindness, and mental illness in the future. Now that sounds like a great cause. But do you see a flip side to this? Do you understand what this technology will be able to do? If we are linking our brains to a computer for hopefully positive results, we could also link our brains to a computer for negative results.

Will the future allow a human brain to interface with a computer? Will humans be capable of downloading as much information as deep learning machines in the future? Could someone hack into someone’s brain and take control? Could a human brain take control of advanced machines in the future and have them do what it demands? Could robots someday be linked into these neural networks and be controlled by the machines or people who are linked in?

The possibilities may sound like science fiction, but about 200 years ago, rockets to the moon and submarines seemed like science fiction.

The AI revolution is just beginning, and it will transform the world more so than the printing press, the industrial revolution, television, and the internet ever did. Could any of this have something to do with the “end times” we read about in the Bible? Buckle up and get ready; we are about to find out.

Sources: “What Is A Neural Network?” https://aws.amazon.com

“AI ‘Godfather’ Geoffrey Hinton warns of Dangers as He Quits Google,” by Zoe Kleinman and Chris Vallance, BBC News, May 2, 2023, www.bbc.com

“Elon Musk’s Brain Implant Company Neuralink Announces FDA Approval In-Human Clinical Study,” by Ashley Capoot, CNBC, May 25, 2023, https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/25/elon-musks-neuralink-gets-fda-approval-for-in-human-study.html

“Dangers of Artificial Intelligence,” Midnight Call, June 2023