The State of AI, from the 80,000 Hours Podcast

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Mar 11, 2024

In this engaging discussion, Rob Wiblin, Head of Research at the 80,000 Hours podcast, explores the dynamic landscape of AI in 2023. He highlights what current AI systems can accomplish, particularly in healthcare and robotics. Wiblin dives into the ethical dilemmas of AI in society, the urgent need for balanced regulations, and the growing polarization in AI discourse. Personal anecdotes add depth as he examines self-driving cars' challenges and advocates for responsible innovation, urging listeners to maintain an informed perspective on AI advancements.

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INSIGHT

Urgent AI Understanding Gap

AI is advancing rapidly but many leaders and people misunderstand its current capabilities.
Closing this understanding gap is vital to avoid bad decisions and dysfunctional discourse.

ADVICE

Enhance AI With Retrieval & Tools

Augment AI systems with retrieval and tool use for broader functionality.
This combined approach supports autonomous task completion and complex real-world actions.

ANECDOTE

AI Passes Driver's Test

Multion's browser agent passed California's online driver's test autonomously.
It used a Chrome extension to leverage existing user sessions for seamless web interaction.

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Today, for our first full episode on the new Cognitive Revolution feed, I'm pleased to share part 2 of my recent appearance on the 80,000 Hours podcast, which presents "In-depth conversations about the world’s most pressing problems and what you can do to solve them"

It's my view, and the premise of this show, that the pace of change in AI is making it nearly impossible for leaders, both in society at large and even in the field itself, to keep up with all the latest developments, and that the growing disconnect between what exists and what people understand represents an increasingly pressing problem, which if not effectively addressed, will likely lead to increasingly dysfunctional discourse, and ultimately major blunders by key decision makers.

In this episode, we cover:

- what AI systems can and can't do, as of late 2023, across language and visual models, medicine, scientific research, self-driving cars, robotics, and weapons;

- what the next big breakthroughs could be,

- the state of AI discourse and the need for positions which combine the best of accelerationist and safety-focused perspectives,

- the chance that irresponsible development provokes a societal backlash and/or heavy-handed regulation,

- a bunch of shout outs to the folks I follow and trust to help me keep up with everything that's going on,

- and more along the way

I definitely encourage you to subscribe to the 80,000 hours podcast feed, where you can find part 1 of this conversation, which centered on OpenAI's leadership drama and safety record, among many other conversations with inspiring difference-makers.

As always, but especially right now as we're establishing the new feed, I would ask that you take a moment to share the Cognitive Revolution with your friends – I've got a number of great pieces on tap, which will only be available on this feed, and I want to make sure my amazing guests get the attention they deserve, so I'll very much appreciate your help in spreading the word.

For now, I hope you enjoy this wide-angle scouting report, from my appearance on the 80,000 Hours podcast with Rob Wiblin!

https://80000hours.org/podcast/