Episode description

AI expert Prof. Gary Marcus doesn't mince words about today's artificial intelligence. He argues that despite the buzz, chatbots like ChatGPT aren't as smart as they seem and could cause real problems if we're not careful.

Marcus is worried about tech companies putting profits before people. He thinks AI could make fake news and privacy issues even worse. He's also concerned that a few big tech companies have too much power. Looking ahead, Marcus believes the AI hype will die down as reality sets in. He wants to see AI developed in smarter, more responsible ways. His message to the public? We need to speak up and demand better AI before it's too late.

Buy Taming Silicon Valley:

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Gary Marcus:

https://garymarcus.substack.com/

https://x.com/GaryMarcus

Interviewer:

Dr. Tim Scarfe

(Refs in top comment)

TOC

[00:00:00] AI Flaws, Improvements & Industry Critique

[00:16:29] AI Safety Theater & Image Generation Issues

[00:23:49] AI's Lack of World Models & Human-like Understanding

[00:31:09] LLMs: Superficial Intelligence vs. True Reasoning

[00:34:45] AI in Specialized Domains: Chess, Coding & Limitations

[00:42:10] AI-Generated Code: Capabilities & Human-AI Interaction

[00:48:10] AI Regulation: Industry Resistance & Oversight Challenges

[00:54:55] Copyright Issues in AI & Tech Business Models

[00:57:26] AI's Societal Impact: Risks, Misinformation & Ethics

[01:23:14] AI X-risk, Alignment & Moral Principles Implementation

[01:37:10] Persistent AI Flaws: System Limitations & Architecture Challenges

[01:44:33] AI Future: Surveillance Concerns, Economic Challenges & Neuro-Symbolic AI

YT version with refs: https://youtu.be/o9MfuUoGlSw