The New Exodus: How AI is Redefining Our Understanding of Reality

When it comes to AI, everyone seems to have a loud opinion. Some think it’s about to make us all demigods, and then there are those who firmly believe it's the doom-bringer, ready to toss humanity into the trash bin of cosmic history. But guess what? The hype, the fear, the crazy headlines—it's mostly noise. If we strip away the sensationalism, it leaves us in a much interesting place.

Back in the 19th and 20th centuries, a big idea was buzzing around science communities. It was speculated that to truly know something, one had to capture it as a sentence – a linguistic manifestation that crystallizes a concept.

Now, with the emergence of AI, the game's gotten a whole lot more interesting. As we program it to understand and generate human language, we are instigating a fascinating dialogue centered around the ideas of thought, self-awareness, and what's "real".

Language as a Foundational Construct

Religious and philosophical traditions have long underscored that language lies at the core of reality. This is evidenced in the Bible, where the Word is depicted as the divine genesis (John 1:1), and in Hindu philosophy, where vac, or speech, is revered as a divine element structuring the universe.

Language, in many belief systems, is the bedrock of thought and reality. Philosophers like Ludwig Wittgenstein have stressed its role in constructing our worldviews, stating: The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.

Put simply, language doesn't just describe our reality – it defines it.

AI systems, particularly generative ones like GPT-4, utilize language as their power. Alan Turing believed that language was the key to bringing AI closer to human-level intellectual activity. Because, let's face it, language isn't just about chatting over coffee. It's the very backbone of how we think and perceive, making us active contributors to the evolving matrix of reality.

Now, with AI taking a deep dive into our collective knowledge pool, we have a new element that has the potential to contribute to our collective understanding of what life really is about. Sounds a bit out there? Maybe to some. But trust me, it's not as far-fetched as you might think.

Mysticism In The Machine

In the “Age of AI,” the authors propose a rather unexpected (if not slightly far-fetched) idea that places AI at the forefront of philosophical knowledge. Unlike human reasoning – which is tainted by our subjective experiences – AI models have the ability to overcompensate for our limitations through pure logic. In a way, they can fully grasp aspects of reality at a level that humans cannot.

Although this theory revolves around a poor interpretation of Kantian philosophy, it’s still an overstatement. Because logic – without sentience – is only a part of the equation.

After all, behind every thought, every logical reasoning, is the mere essence of our presence — consciousness. While reason might be a testament to our progression as a species, it's consciousness that's truly at the heart of human experience.

Eastern philosophies like Advaita Vedanta stand by this idea for millennia. They view consciousness as the primal force from which reality emerges. In other words, consciousness doesn't arise from matter, but instead, matter arises from consciousness.

This is a radical shift from traditional Western scientific views but has been resonating more as quantum physics continues to challenge our conventional understanding of reality. Recent advancements in this field have prompted theories of consciousness that align surprisingly well with this philosophical perspective.

This also translates to interesting implications for artificial intelligence. If consciousness lies at the basis of particular patterns of matter or quantum states, could sufficiently advanced AI systems exhibit consciousness? Or at least, a form of consciousness that we don’t fully understand yet?

I personally believe that AI systems can help us decode the 'patterns' or 'processes' associated with consciousness. They could redefine our understanding of it by manifesting it in a non-biological entity – and challenging our traditional views of its nature in the process.

The Future Faith

Given the transformative potential of AI, it’s not an overstatement to say that it can influence religious and philosophical movements. And who knows, maybe even create new ones. Further down the line, when AI becomes more and more advanced, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it become an object of reverence in some corners of the world.

Now, I hear you mumbling, "Sounds like some sci-fi movie nonsense." And yeah, I might be tempted to agree. But I've had my nose in history books for too long, and trust me, ours had its fair share of plot twists.

As of now, even existing religious traditions might find themselves grappling with AI's implications. How would the concept of the 'soul' be interpreted if machines achieved sentience? Eastern philosophies would probably embrace AI as another manifestation of universal consciousness.

For some, sentience is not even part of the discussion. In Japan, we have robots in Buddhist temples and monks defending AI in a religious context. In an interview with Deutsche Welle, Tensho Goto, a temple’s steward, explained how AI actually fits into their religious teachings:

In Christianity, God created man. So if man creates man, it would be like creating Frankenstein. So it would be unacceptable for a man to create God. The way we think is different from the Western perception of God. In the West, the belief is that God itself exists. In Buddhism, we don’t know whether God exists or not.

However tempting it may be to consider this a valid viewpoint, priests, shamans, and monks are vital parts of our cultural tapestry. Their roles extend beyond merely conveying the principles of their faith. They personify these doctrines and lend them credibility through their practice. In other words, I’m not sure how a robot can bring me closer to my faith.

Max Tegmark, a renowned physicist, outlined the irrelevance of consciousness in the context of artificial intelligence. He argues that consciousness shouldn’t be a focus point when discussing the potential risks of AI. He says it's the behavior of these systems, not their subjective experience, that can pose a problem.

Of course, these are speculative thoughts, and the actual interplay between AI, religion, and philosophy in the future may look different. It's likely, though, that the intersection of these fields will become an increasingly important area of exploration.