265
Opensource AI Must Win (opensourceaimustwin.com)
submitted 2 months ago by to c/technology@lemmy.world
111 comments fedilink hide all child comments
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] 17 points 2 months ago (2 children)

It's not going to. Saying all AI should stop is like saying "all gunpowder should stop". Would everyone be better off if no one was using it? Maybe. But that's not going to happen at this point, and will give you a strategic disadvantage if you unilaterally disarm.

And to be clear I'm not talking about using AI to write a screenplay or something creative, I mean like using it to write software, to optimize industrial processes etc.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] -1 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    Gunpowder has some very good uses.

    AI has all the worst use-cases while frying the planet.

    AI will kill us not because it becomes sentient, but because we have turned our brains off and disregarded the coming extinction event.

    We don't need software for everything. We need to scale down our evergy usage, and we can do that ourselves.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    You're right that global warming is an existential threat. And right now the power grid is contributing to it.

    At the same time, we're seeing constant innovations in solar power and battery technology, while the cost of both are going down. Solar is now the cheapest source of energy per unit. There is enough energy from the sun to cover multiples of all current energy use by humans.

    AI models started out as extremely energy intensive, but are becoming increasingly more efficient. You can now run models on your phone with abilities which previously required a server running dedicated graphics cards.

    You're also right that we shouldn't outsource critical thinking. Still to say AI has "all the worst use cases" is wrong. Yes, it has plenty of bad use cases, by many great ones. I use it in my day to day work to save time.

    Something like a law banning the use of AI will never pass, and if it did, other countries wouldn't also pass it. A country which uses AI will outperform one that does not (economically, although probably militarily as well). In that scenario, leaving AI capability in the hands of private enterprise makes us subject to the whims of rich elites. For an analog see the case of Elon Musk turning Starlink on/off in Ukraine. Which again is why I do think there's value in open source AI, and more specifically AI only available to democratically controlled entities - nation states but also things like worker cooperatives to compete with corporations.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago (1 child)

    What are we doing in life that we need ridiculous autocomplete to save time at work?

    If we wanna talk about absolutes, we don't need commute at all, and cars, and we can just build trains and live happy lives without consuming so much shit.

    AI is not needed anywhere at all. Unlike food (vegan), water, heat, and shelter.

    Which many people don't have.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    You're right, we don't "need" most modern conveniences. But they save us time and provide an improved quality of life. Why do we need power tools? Why motors? Why electricity, running water, artificial light? I joke, but AI is one of a long chain of tools designed to save us time, or extend our capabilities and reach. Why are you particularly opposed to this one over others? I return to my argument: AI is concerning because of its potential for change. I don't think we can prevent it from existing, but we can make it accessible to normal people and not solely the domain of the rich.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] -5 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    "All AI should stop" is a far more reasonable opinion than the one presented by the website blog 9-sentence rant linked above.

    You have far more in common with the person you're pushing back on than the author of the rant.

    AI is a civilizational infrastructure for work, education, science, software, creativity, public services, and national capacity.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 6 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    I bet me and the person I'm responding to have a ton in common. Likewise me and the person who wrote that post. But I don't relate to the position of "all AI should stop."

    I think there should be democratically accountable AI development. I'm interested in open source but the problem with it is that private corporations take advantage of it until they get big enough to try to lock out competitors. (See Google with Android) I would love to see an "open source" license which allows use by individuals and democratic entities, but forbids use by private enterprise.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 0 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    Unless you want to vouch for the rant site's claim that AI is necessary for civilization and existence, you have almost nothing in common with his fearmongering. And if you do believe that, that is disappointing.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] -2 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    I don't see it as fear mongering. What do you think of open source software like Linux, Firefox, VLC and so on? Because a similar argument is made there - we need to use these tools day to day, and the only option being to pay a corporation to use them would make us literally poorer, and we also wouldn't have the features and quality we see in Windows, Mac, Chrome etc if there weren't open source competitors.

    Is lack of open source AI currently a civilizational existential threat? No. Could it be if current trends continue? Potentially. Things could get pretty dystopian if only the mega rich control tools with ultra-intelligence.

    There are some open models right now, but they're mostly ones created by private enterprise that were released to the public. Creating models is more resource intensive than making open source software. So it makes sense to pool resources for the public good.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 0 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    Ah, the fear of the potential thing as described by the ultra-rich.

    Why do you trust them to be the ones who shape your fears?

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago (1 child)

    I don't think you're engaging with what I'm saying sincerely, and I'm trying to do that with you.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago (1 child)

    I was responding directly to this.

    Is lack of open source AI currently a civilizational existential threat? No. Could it be if current trends continue? Potentially. Things could get pretty dystopian if only the mega rich control tools with ultra-intelligence.

    "Could", "potentially," what-ifs. CEOs and actual cult leaders like Eli Yudkowsky have spoonfed the narrative to gullible journalists and politicians.

    Why do you trust them?

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago

    Yeah, it's in AI companies interest to hype how all powerful their product is. I'm not necessarily talking about that.

    When I say potentially, I'm not a doomer, so not trying to say there's no hope, I do think we can make the world better than it is.

    That said, one example of dystopian future: one of my clients makes networked security cameras. I saw a presentation where they were showing off their AI search capability. They had a static shot of an expressway, with hours of footage, and they said "I want to find a person in a bus wearing a brown shirt" and just like that pulled up the relevant moment. Not something you want an authoritarian to have. They're going to get it anyways. But would love to have similar power available to the people.

    Likewise when you think about accumulation of capital, which is shorthand for accumulation of power. AI will allow elites to accelerate that accumulation and have less use for people. "Who cares if you go on strike? I don't need you."

    Having open source AI can turn the tables: "Who cares if you raised the price? I'll make it myself."

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent