Digital scientists including Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic, predict that high artificial general intelligence will exist in 2027 or 2028. The suggestion is that a computer brain will be superhuman, superintelligent by that time. Let that sink in. 

Once this happens, these powerful systems will improve on themselves exponentially, identify mind-blowing discoveries about the universe and human condition, and take control of all aspects of our daily lives. We are on the doorstep to a brave new world.

Soon, the only jobs will involve direct, hands-on human labor. Mind work will largely end. Once smart robots become ubiquitous, even hands-on jobs will end. AI leaders promise eventual abundance after a period of “adjustment.” Humans will eventually have the resources they need to thrive, they say. I don’t believe it.

President Trump does. His administration’s Genesis Mission iniative is about making this happen. Genesis prioritizes the development of AI data centers across the nation, rapid implementation of robotics, and minimal regulation. Sen. Bernie Sanders knows what’s behind all of this and is speaking out. Few others are.

I don’t want this future. I believe that most Americans, when aware, will not want this either. Yet here we are. It is mind-bending to think in these terms, I know, and I have days when I scratch my head in disbelief. I’ve read enough to believe it is true —if not in a few years, then certainly in a decade. 

What if I choose to resist? Will I have any agency at all?

Tom Meuser
Portland