[How About This Book] Warning from the Father of AlphaGo: "Uncontrolled Technology Could Destroy Humanity"

DeepMind Founder Suleiman
New Wave of AI and Synthetic Biology
Difficult to Control Technological Advances
10 Recommendations for Regulation

Mustafa Suleyman, author of The Coming Wave, can be considered the father of the artificial intelligence (AI) ‘AlphaGo’ that faced Go player Lee Sedol in March 2016. Suleyman co-founded DeepMind in London, UK, in 2010 with Demis Hassabis and Shane Legg. This is the company that developed AlphaGo.

The new wave Suleyman refers to is defined by two core technologies: AI and synthetic biology. He explains that these new technologies could bring immense wealth and leisure to humanity but could also empower malicious actors to cause unimaginable levels of chaos and instability. Between blessing and disaster, Suleyman believes disaster is closer, as he thinks it will be difficult to control technological advancements to a level that humanity can handle.

Suleyman presents an interesting equation to simply describe the world we live in: “Modern Civilization = (Life + Intelligence) × Energy.”

Introducing AI as intelligence and synthetic biology as life into the equation sets the stage for rapid expansion of civilization. The superior learning ability of AI was already confirmed in the Go match against Lee Sedol. Suleyman admits he was not confident in AlphaGo’s victory at the time and confesses that AI’s development over the past decade has been astonishing.

The variable of life in the equation is also rapidly growing due to advances in synthetic biology. Synthetic biology has already copied bacterial genomes to create new life forms, extracted light-sensitive protein genes from seaweed to partially restore vision for the visually impaired, and cultured a kind of brain (clusters of nerve cells grown in test tubes) that has reached the level of being taught games.

In synthetic biology, DNA is also considered a kind of system. We have reached a level where the encoding of the DNA system can be modified and intentionally altered. We are now able to read, edit, and write the code of life. Moreover, like the AI industry, synthetic biology is on a trajectory of rapid change characterized by cost reduction and capability enhancement. For example, the cost of DNA sequencing plummeted from $1 billion in 2003 to less than $1,000 in 2022.

The rapid development of AI and synthetic biology requires large-scale electricity. Renewable energy is becoming the solution. Suleyman notes that the cost of solar energy dropped from $4.88 per watt in 2000 to 38 cents in 2019, and he predicts that renewable energy will become the largest single power source by 2027.

Because all three variables in the equation?intelligence, life, and energy?are rapidly increasing, civilization, that is, the world we live in, is on the brink of rapid change.

Suleyman warns that if the technologies driving these rapid changes are not controlled, there is a real risk that technology could bring about humanity’s downfall, as depicted in many movies. A clear example is the birth of gene-edited twins ‘Lulu’ and ‘Nana’ in China in 2018.

Suleyman expresses doubt about whether humans can continue to maintain control and mentions the so-called ‘gorilla problem.’ Gorillas are physically stronger than humans but are endangered and confined in zoos. Humans, with smaller muscles but larger brains, imprison gorillas. Suleyman warns that by creating something smarter than ourselves, we may lose our position at the top of the food chain and end up in a situation similar to that of gorillas.

In Suleyman’s view, controlling technology is practically impossible. The whole world has already entered a race to develop AI technology. He even admits that DeepMind was called the ‘Manhattan Project of AI.’ The Manhattan Project refers to the US nuclear bomb development plan during World War II, implying a nuclear arms race among great powers.

Furthermore, the power of the state?the only entity capable of managing the new wave?has weakened. Due to successive economic crises and politics focused only on showmanship, trust in governments has plummeted. Many developed countries are also facing population decline, which leads to loss of labor force and reduced government finances.

Suleyman wrote this book to emphasize the need for efforts to slow down the uncontrolled pace of technological development. In the final chapter, he proposes ten steps to suppress the new wave. He stresses increasing research and investment in AI safety, creating a foundation for companies to pursue profits while maintaining ethical awareness, and the necessity of civic movements. He also calls for efforts to strengthen the state, including tax reforms focused on capital.

Suleyman acknowledges that in the worst case, all ten steps could fail. Nevertheless, he insists that it is important to do our best to create conditions that can at least somewhat restrain technological advancement. Even as he doubts whether such restraint is possible, ultimately, this book evokes the title of an essay written by mathematician John von Neumann near the end of his life in 1955.

“Can We Survive Technology?”

The Coming Wave | Mustafa Suleyman | Translated by Lee Jeongmi | Hans Media | 512 pages | 25,000 KRW

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.