Right on target. When ordinary people inform their lawmakers about the situation and pressure them to act, they tend to take action! My own state-level representative drafted an AI safety bill after I got one meeting with her, and I'm just some guy! These are scary times, and the vibes are now publicly shifting. It's time to demand a global moratorium on frontier AI development.
Love the DIP, and love this. There are admittedly a large-ish number of people I might prefer didn't directly try to do this, but for likable and professional people I definitely think this is the move.
(Rafe just mentioned your name the other day, wonder if it was in relation to this)
I really like and deeply agree with this post and with DIP, but also, it really pisses me off.
I started reading and thinking about ASI Alignment around 2013, and back then there was no chatgpt and telling laypeople you were concerned about AI leading to extinction often made them think you were actually insane, like, schizophrenic. The strength the spectre has in my heart is from the lived experience of trying to convince people I'm not insane. Of wondering if I really am insane.
For all I hate large AI companies for creating a dangerous AI capabilities race, I actually feel deep gratitude to them for making AI something that everyone wants to talk about. I hate how everyone talks about it as if it's a new thing that was just invented, but at least I can talk to people about it now.
And I have been working towards being a technical AI Alignment researcher for many years now. I think activities like DIP are greatly more important right now than any technical work, so much so that I ran PauseAI protests and outreach while stressed out of my mind finishing my BSc.
I want you to know how ridiculous of a change of career path "computer scientist" to "activist & policy maker" is. I do not think that is normal and I do not think that is a normal thing to ask of people. I agree with you that you should be asking that of people, and maybe my experience is rare enough that it doesn't make sense to talk about. Maybe most people are not involved with AI at a technical level and those that are really do not care about AI Alignment and Ord's precipice and the future of humanity.
I really am grateful for everything you are doing and for writing this post to direct attention to this problem, but all the same, reading this was quite aggravating for me.
Right on target. When ordinary people inform their lawmakers about the situation and pressure them to act, they tend to take action! My own state-level representative drafted an AI safety bill after I got one meeting with her, and I'm just some guy! These are scary times, and the vibes are now publicly shifting. It's time to demand a global moratorium on frontier AI development.
That's awesome, great work contacting your lawmaker!
Could you share who the State rep is and the bill? In DM if you prefer.
I'll DM since the bill isn't publicly published yet.
Love the DIP, and love this. There are admittedly a large-ish number of people I might prefer didn't directly try to do this, but for likable and professional people I definitely think this is the move.
(Rafe just mentioned your name the other day, wonder if it was in relation to this)
I really like and deeply agree with this post and with DIP, but also, it really pisses me off.
I started reading and thinking about ASI Alignment around 2013, and back then there was no chatgpt and telling laypeople you were concerned about AI leading to extinction often made them think you were actually insane, like, schizophrenic. The strength the spectre has in my heart is from the lived experience of trying to convince people I'm not insane. Of wondering if I really am insane.
For all I hate large AI companies for creating a dangerous AI capabilities race, I actually feel deep gratitude to them for making AI something that everyone wants to talk about. I hate how everyone talks about it as if it's a new thing that was just invented, but at least I can talk to people about it now.
And I have been working towards being a technical AI Alignment researcher for many years now. I think activities like DIP are greatly more important right now than any technical work, so much so that I ran PauseAI protests and outreach while stressed out of my mind finishing my BSc.
I want you to know how ridiculous of a change of career path "computer scientist" to "activist & policy maker" is. I do not think that is normal and I do not think that is a normal thing to ask of people. I agree with you that you should be asking that of people, and maybe my experience is rare enough that it doesn't make sense to talk about. Maybe most people are not involved with AI at a technical level and those that are really do not care about AI Alignment and Ord's precipice and the future of humanity.
I really am grateful for everything you are doing and for writing this post to direct attention to this problem, but all the same, reading this was quite aggravating for me.
I don't have a thing to respond to your comment.
This is what you lived, how you felt and how you feel.
I just wanted to let you know that I acknowledge it, and to share my belief that in an ideal world, you would not have to go through to this.