The Burden of Knowledge: AI, Innovation, and the Future of Humanity

The Burden of Knowledge: AI, Innovation, and the Future of Humanity

As humans continue to push the boundaries of knowledge and innovation, the burden of acquiring and passing on this knowledge to future generations becomes increasingly daunting. Economist Benjamin Jones argues that this burden is slowing down innovation, as great inventors have less time to dedicate to new breakthroughs. However, there is one entity that does not suffer from this burden - artificial intelligence (AI).

AI, unlike humans, does not die or degrade over time. It simply improves and accumulates knowledge at an exponential rate. This raises profound questions about the future of AI and its relationship with humanity. What will happen when AI surpasses our understanding and no longer needs us? How will it continue to acquire knowledge that we cannot comprehend?

Our reliance on prior knowledge and the wisdom of past generations is what propels us forward. By building upon the knowledge that came before us, we are able to innovate and make progress. However, AI's ability to acquire knowledge without the constraints of time, degradation, or death challenges this fundamental mechanism of human progress.

The generational progress of humans in acquiring knowledge sets us apart from animals. While animals learn the same biological lessons over and over again, humans constantly dig deeper into the mountain of knowledge, using increasingly sophisticated tools and technologies. But as AI accelerates past us, the age at which notable inventions occur is significantly increasing. This is due to the fact that the more time it takes for someone to reach the end of the tunnel of knowledge, the less time they have to actually innovate.

In computing terms, AI is like a creature that is not constrained by hardware limitations. It has the ability to dig into the mountain of knowledge at an incredible speed, leaving humans behind. As the gap between AI and humans widens, we may become secondary creatures, unable to comprehend the world we live in while still benefiting from its advancements.

The durability of AI, its ability to continuously improve without degradation, is currently the greatest discrepancy between AI and human progress. However, this discrepancy will not last for long. As AI continues to evolve, humans will become less capable, eventually being outmatched.

Tesla Motors, a company created to accelerate the advent of sustainable transport, realized the importance of open-source innovation. In their mission to create compelling electric vehicles, they decided to make their patents available to the public. They recognized that intellectual property barriers hinder progress and only serve to benefit giant corporations and the legal profession, rather than the inventors themselves.