some thoughts on Neuralink.
Former hours of this day were spent with two long time friends. I’m particularly proud of one of the pair, my friend Mr Ling. He is the reason i’m in very high spirits. After a 7 year journey along a difficult and testing path, Mr Ling graduated from law school. This achievement is a testament to his dignified efforts.
Before I continue to the topic of discussion I must reproach myself. My commitments to daily entries/writing have been undisciplined and with that the quality of my communication across many aspects of my domain have fallen. I try to act as if I believe that “the quality of your life is the quality of your communication”. With that adage in the forefront of my mind, I will endeavour to keep writing more content, in the highest quality I can manage, more regularly.
A pensive mood struck as soon as the video for Neuralink’s launch irrevocably crossed my path. I’ve followed this company after first hearing about it 8 months ago, but nothing magnanimous in news since I discovered its existence. The video appeared on youtube when I was going about my commute home from work on what felt like a particularly routine day. Little did I know that this video would completely shift my focus of interest, at least temporarily, to the subject of brain-machine interface capabilities, transhumanism and the enormous potential of artificial intelligence.
Consequently, after watching the Neuralink presentation I was enthralled by the notion of a high bandwidth brain-machine interface no longer being in the realm of science-fiction. The applications of such a device were the main focus points of the presentation. The chance of a solution to brain/nerve injuries which cause suffering to many individuals is overwhelmingly positive.
It is the potential of this device which excites me. Though with such great potential comes with it an array of possibilities for the future, not all of them being positive in nature. “It’s easy to pave the way to hell with good intentions” Musk stated in the video. I was discussing transhumanism with a friend of mine which spiralled me into this thought.
“Education and intelligence can be a tool for people to transcend their social and cultural boundaries.“
You see this with many migrant families who come to new lands and through their brains, books and hard-work, manage to completely change their socio-economic environment. What if a merge with AI becomes available and access to this procedure is gated by “first movers”. Would we have boards of characters such as Niander Wallace ( Blade Runner 2049 - Movie ) as gate keeps to this possibility ?
I’m an optimist when it comes to ideas of how technology will craft our future and the power of AI excites me. At the end of the presentation Musk answers a philosophical question which considers the implications of the widespread alleviation of suffering brought about from the introduction of a high bandwidth brain machine interface. Musk added that they hope to “Make a significant difference... humans can address a lot of suffering in the world and make things a lot better.”