Jack Roycroft-Sherry Will AI Ever Be Conscious? - Adam Safron
May 26, 2025
Adam Safron is a researcher focused on consciousness, currently organizing a Royal Society issue on the nature of agents. In this discussion, he tackles the distinction between consciousness and intelligence while pondering the implications of conscious AI. Safron explores the idea of creating artificial species and the moral responsibilities we hold toward them. He provocatively addresses the risks of AI and our duty to consider ethical parameters in both AI and space exploration, asking whether we should even aim to develop conscious AI.
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Consciousness vs Intelligence
- Intelligence and agency can arise without consciousness but certain complex forms require it.
- Consciousness grounds symbols and supports flexible, autonomous interaction with the world.
Specialized Biological Intelligences
- Many biological systems show remarkable intelligence specialized in their domain.
- We wouldn't want to control these intelligences but rather let them operate autonomously.
Efficiency of Biological Intelligence
- Biological intelligence is vastly more energy efficient than current AI.
- We need AI grounded in life-like embodied computation for flexibility and safety.
