In this blog post, we will look at the possibility of artificial intelligence in movies becoming a reality and what opportunities and threats it may pose to humanity.
Iron Man, Interstellar, The Matrix, Terminator. What these movies have in common is that they feature artificial intelligence. In movies, artificial intelligence is different from the machines and objects we encounter in our daily lives. For example, the computer I use to do my homework doesn’t understand me and doesn’t move on its own. It only performs functions when I give commands using the keyboard or mouse. However, the artificial intelligence in the movie understands human speech, makes its own decisions, and moves. Iron Man’s Jarvis and the robot TARS in Interstellar act as helpers while performing various commands from the main character. On the other hand, the artificial intelligence robots that appear in The Matrix and Terminator try to destroy human civilization and even control all of humanity. Of course, this is impossible at the current level of technology. It is only an imagination that is possible in movies, but we cannot completely ignore the possibility of it being realized with future research and development. Will there come a time when the survival of humanity is threatened by artificial intelligence?
First, let’s take a look at what artificial intelligence is. Artificial intelligence can be divided into “artificial” and “intelligence.” “Artificial” refers to things that are not naturally occurring and are made by humans. On the other hand, the meaning of “intelligence” is difficult to define clearly. In a dictionary, it means “the ability of intellectual activity,” but depending on its elements, scope, and characteristics, scholars may give different definitions. There is a common view that it is the ability to learn by using previous experiences and adapting to new objects or situations. This is not much different from the meaning of intelligence that we generally think of. Therefore, artificial intelligence refers to machines or programs that are made by humans and have the ability to adapt and learn new things. This artificial intelligence is divided into weak and strong artificial intelligence depending on the scope of its intelligence.
Weak AI looks intelligent, but in reality, it is not. Programs for autonomous vehicles, programs that search the Internet through voice recognition, or programs that interact with users in simulation games all fall under weak AI. Most of the AI currently in use or under development fall into this category. They look intelligent, but they are limited to making decisions based on the information that has been input. It is impossible to adapt to new situations and objects. For example, a self-driving car may seem to adapt to new situations by recognizing objects or people that suddenly appear on the road or driving path for the first time and stopping or diverting. However, these recognition and judgment criteria cannot exceed the range set in advance by the developer, and it is impossible to use empirical knowledge such as “It was a person yesterday, so I should avoid it today.” Therefore, it cannot be said to have intelligence. Of course, there are programs that can learn and change their judgment criteria by combining the events they encounter, but the method of change is also limited to the scope set by the developer. In this respect, all current AI is weak AI.
Strong AI, unlike weak AI, is AI that actually has intelligence. It is an artificial intelligence that can think and act like a human or think and act beyond humans. It can adapt to and learn from completely new situations or objects and think for itself. It can also recognize itself and set goals. The core of strong artificial intelligence is the ability to create something new. In other words, strong artificial intelligence is an entity with intelligence that is almost the same as that of humans, that is, an artificial intelligence with a “mind.” Currently, there are no programs or robots with minds, but there is much discussion about whether such artificial intelligence can be developed or whether it will emerge by chance as technology advances.
There are two main approaches to strong artificial intelligence. One is through program algorithms, and the other is through a bioengineering approach. First of all, the method of developing artificial intelligence through computer programming is currently being actively researched and is relatively easy to access. However, this method alone is not enough to achieve strong artificial intelligence. In a lecture at Ewha Womans University, KAIST neuroscientist Kim Dae-sik (2015) said, “The resolution of language is lower than the resolution of thought.” In other words, human thought cannot be fully expressed in language, and it is almost impossible to program it into machine language. For example, if the program has the criteria “cats have fur,” the AI will have no choice but to recognize a furry puppy as a cat or a hairless cat as not a cat. If more criteria are input, it will be able to distinguish cats, but this will not be an accurate determination of whether something is a cat, but rather a calculation of the probability that it is a cat. It is very difficult to program something that is difficult to express clearly in human language, as abstract boundaries that distinguish things.
The biotechnological approach is an attempt to artificially create the human brain. For example, the research team of Lulu Qian at Caltech (2011) created four artificial neurons with 112 strands of DNA. It has been said that this system can distinguish between people through training, but the human brain still has an incomparable level of more than 15 billion neurons on the surface of the cerebral cortex. However, it may be possible to create more than 15 billion artificial neurons over time. Synapses, which refer to connections between neurons, are also known to change over time, and if this mechanism is fully understood, artificial brains may be realized someday. Then, the last question that remains is whether a “mind” exists only in the brain. If a mind exists in an artificially created brain, it can be concluded that the realization of strong artificial intelligence is possible.
If only an artificial brain could be created, it would be possible to prove it experimentally. While there are ethical issues with using humans as test subjects, it is possible to experiment on animals that have the emergent ability to use tools. There have been similar experiments in the past, and in 1970, Robert White implanted a monkey’s brain and spinal cord into another monkey’s body and allowed it to survive for nine days. Although the monkey eventually died due to an immune rejection reaction, it showed similar behavior during its lifetime. Of course, there are limitations to the artificial brain, but if an artificial brain is implemented, similar results are expected.
In conclusion, the implementation of strong artificial intelligence depends on the development of artificial brains. If an artificial brain is developed and given a mind, a strong artificial intelligence will become possible. However, whether such a strong artificial intelligence will pose a threat to the survival of humanity is another question. We do not see cows or monkeys as a threat to the survival of humanity, and we know that people can become beings who conform to reality even in irrational situations through brainwashing. Therefore, even if an artificial intelligence with a mind appears, it is likely that it will not escape human control.
