There is a lot of talk in both philosophical and technological communities about the possibility of artificial intelligence one day becoming conscious. It seems plausible: after all, if minds are just brains, and brains are just information processors, could we not in principle mimic neural functionality in a silicon machine?

Anil Seth is a neuroscientist and professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience at the University of Sussex. He recently wrote an award-winning essay, “The Mythology of Conscious AI”, arguing that consciousness is “more likely a property of life than of computation”, and that AI might simply not have the relevant capabilities for conscious thought.

For example, some neurons in our brains specifically interact with metabolism. Therefore, to completely simulate a human brain, we would also have to simulate metabolism, and perhaps that is just something that silicon can’t really do.

Anil is a materialist, and believes consciousness to be what he calls a “controlled hallucination”. This is his second appearance on Within Reason, this time to discuss his essay, and the notion of consciousness as unique to biological life.

I am looking forward, as always, to your early feedback.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 - The Difference Between Intelligence and Consciousness
3:55 - What’s Stopping the Replication of Consciousness in AI?
15:52 - Can You Separate What the Brain Is From What It Does?
21:11 - Is Conscious Experience Just Predictions From the Brain?
25:39 - Why Do We Project Consciousness Onto LLMs?
36:18 - Can Consciousness Exist Without a Body?
41:16 - Why We Liken the Brain to a Computer
51:02 - Is There An Evolutionary Reason For Consciousness?
55:20 - Studying Unconscious Perception?
01:00:12 - Is Consciousness Unified? Split-Brain Patients
01:14:01 - Attention and Consciousness
01:17:55 - What Would a Conscious Chatbot Even Look Like?
01:24:04 - Consciousness as a Controlled Hallucination
01:33:10 - Do Scientists Actually Study “Consciousness” At All?

Why AI Will Never Be Conscious - Anil Seth

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