The DeSci Podcast
Juan Benet on the Translational Science Problem, AGI and Decentralized Science
Episode guests
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
- The biggest challenge in science is translating discoveries into real-world applications that benefit society.
- Cryptocurrency has had a significant impact on scientific funding, supporting controversial and frontier scientific fields.
- Incentives and metrics for scientific research need to shift to prioritize long-term, unconventional work.
- The development of AGI and transformative AI will require adaptation in economic systems and governance for equitable outcomes.
Deep dives
Prioritizing high leverage impact and simpler plans
To achieve massive scale impact, it is important to prioritize efforts that have higher likelihood of success and can have a ripple effect through networks and communities. Building on smaller efforts that can translate into larger impacts is key. The focus should be on finding leverage points and accelerating progress through smarter allocation of resources.
The need for better translation of scientific discoveries
The biggest bottleneck in science is the translation of scientific discoveries into real-world applications. While funding for scientific research is important, the challenge lies in how to effectively translate concepts into concrete projects that can benefit society. This requires better mechanisms and incentive structures to support the translation process and connect scientific discoveries to the broader economy.
Creating an ecosystem for decentralized science
Protocol Labs aims to build a network-oriented R&D ecosystem that spans the entire scientific pipeline. This involves creating a network of companies, research groups, and foundations that are aligned with long-term improvement and focus on different areas of scientific and technological innovation. The goal is to foster collaboration, funding, and open culture to accelerate progress in fields like computing, longevity, cryonics, and taboo sciences.
Transforming incentives and metrics in science
To enable breakthroughs, a shift in incentives and metrics is needed. Traditional structures that hinder unconventional or taboo sciences should be reevaluated and funding mechanisms should be designed to support long-term R&D work. Open networks and crowd-sourced funding platforms hold promise for creating new incentives and systems that prioritize valuable scientific outcomes. Creating better structures for IP transactions and academic credit can also drive innovation and collaboration in the scientific community.
Importance of Crypto in Advancing Science Funding
The podcast episode explores how crypto has played a significant role in advancing science funding. Crypto, being outside the mainstream, has allowed funding to directly and visibly support scientific fields that are considered more controversial or on the frontier. Crypto has also enabled more direct and transparent funding flows, unlike traditional funding systems. The ability to quickly open Overton windows through strategic actions in the crypto space has accelerated the development and acceptance of frontier scientific fields like brain-machine interfaces. With the generational shift in leadership and the rise of the internet, rapid progress in science and AI is anticipated, leading to potential risks and rewards for humanity's future. Governments and economic systems need to adapt and evolve to ensure the benefits of AGI and transformative AI are maximized while mitigating any potential risks.
Challenges of AI Development
The episode discusses the challenges and risks associated with the development of AI, specifically AGI (Artificial General Intelligence). AGI, which could rewrite humanity's future, is believed to be closer than many people realize. The speaker emphasizes the importance of developing AGI safely and aligning it with human values to avoid potential catastrophic consequences. Despite the optimistic outlook for AGI's potential benefits, there is a need for caution and careful consideration of the risks involved. The speaker encourages researchers and policymakers to address the complexities of AGI ethics, regulation, and governance to ensure a safe and successful transition into a future where humans and AGI coexist.
Impact of AGI and Economic Systems
The podcast episode explores how the emergence of AGI and other transformative AI technologies will reshape economic systems and societies in the coming decades. The speaker emphasizes the need for governments to adapt their economic policies and governance to ensure inclusive and equitable outcomes in the face of technological changes. They discuss the potential for universal basic income (UBI) and the importance of reimagining work in a world where AI can replace many traditional jobs. The speaker highlights the necessity for economists and policymakers to devise strategies that steer societies towards a future where humans can focus on high-value tasks and creativity while AI systems handle other labor-intensive areas.
Decentralized Science and Future Innovations
The episode dives into the concept of decentralized science and highlights the importance of open access tools and mechanisms for peer review. The speaker suggests making credit attribution and funding mechanisms for R&D on-chain, enabling greater transparency and fair distribution of resources. They share exciting innovations like hyper certs, impact regulators, radical drips, and network capital that can revolutionize funding and impact measurement in science. The speaker also encourages building internet-native platforms for sharing scientific artifacts and creating collaborative AI models that can augment the scientific process. They emphasize the need for experimentation, collaboration, and continuous improvements in the scientific community to accelerate progress and address pressing global challenges.
Welcome to another episode of the DeSci Podcast. Today, we were joined by Juan Benet, the founder of Protocol Labs, an open-source research, development, and deployment laboratory.
In this episode, Juan shares the story of his journey, the origins of Protocol Labs, and how he got involved in building IPFS and Filecoin.
We uncover the underlying issues hindering technological advancements and dive deep into the translational science problem which Juan Benet believes is the biggest challenge facing science today. Juan emphasized the need to facilitate the translation of scientific discoveries and knowledge into real-world applications and solutions that can improve human health and benefit society at large.
Moving forward, we explore the impact of cryptocurrency on scientific research and its transformative potential. Other topics we discussed on the podcast include intersection of Artificial Intelligence and the future, risks associated with Advanced General Intelligence systems and how AGI could potentially shape the future of society.
Feel free to navigate through the various topics covered in the Podcast using the timestamps provided below.
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⭐ Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:32 Background story of Juan Benet
09:28 Fundamental issues holding back technological advancements
14:36 Structural difference between the private sector and academia
21:17 Cryptocurrency's impact on scientific research
30:13 How Protocol Labs is structured
39:19 Protocol Labs' objectives and metrics measurement approach
44:59 Underexplored areas in scientific research
1:02:53 AI and the future
1:11:13 Risks associated with AGI systems
1:22:40 How AGI would shape the future society
1:41:24 What ideas are you most excited about?
1:51:48 Recommendations
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If you prefer listening to podcasts on audio apps, feel free to search for "The DeSci Podcast" on Spotify, Google Podcasts & Apple Podcasts. You'll also find all links to the podcast apps below.
If you want to join us on the show as a speaker or have guest ideas, please shoot us an mail at podcast@molecule.to
Special thanks to
Vincent Weisser: https://twitter.com/vincentweisser
Juan Benet: https://twitter.com/juanbenet
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Let's connect:
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X: https://twitter.com/Molecule_dao
Discord: https://discord.com/invite/moleculedao
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