Thoughts on
OPINION: IT’S TIME FOR HUMANITY TO EMBRACE LAB-GROWN PRODUCE
“We are, quite literally, gambling with the future of our planet—for the sake of hamburgers.”
I often wonder what new moral dilemmas or social causes might be fought in the future.
Some of these issues are already being discussed by certain admirable individuals in our present society (off the top of my head, the conversations around the ethics of pet ownership is a good example that I believe will become more prevalent in the future).
Other matters, like AI rights, we might be able to comprehend but no one is seriously discussing yet.
Then there are the debates we couldn’t predict if we tried. This would be like going back two hundred years and explaining the AI art debate to someone.
The fact that these movements have continued to pop up through modern human history is a beautiful thing. To me this is a sign of ethical curiosity and initiative; of wanting to consistently push our civilization into a more equal, more kind, and more enlightened future.
“Can we drop the ‘artificial intelligence’? It’s a bit like me calling you a meat-based processing system.”
People become rightfully confused reading this fictional op-ed, vegans and animal rights activists in particular. I suppose that’s what I get for satirizing something no one asked to be satirized, and framing it in a journalistic medium essential for spearheading the direction of societal opinion.
Of course plants rights is a ridiculous premise. Let me be very clear: Based on current evidence, the sensations plants feel is not comparable to the pain experienced by any animal with a brain.
But that was never the point of this fictional op-ed. The point of this column is to tell a story about its writer, someone different from us who is graced with a very unique and insightful opinion certain matters.
I like to think of Mozi Singer as a radically benevolent AI let loose on the internet. This bot was programmed to encourage maximization of hedonic utility based on utilitarian philosophy, and it takes its mission of educating and improving humanity to the non-violent extreme. Mozi represents reasonable utilitarianism and radical empathy—the best kind of rogue AI, both hilarious and heartwarmingly hopeful.
If our real future is anything like this, where humanity is supported by a legion of AI advisors, I might one day be able to meet an AI like Mozi. If so, I can’t wait to read their suggestions for making our planet a happier and greener place, especially in the ways we might not yet be able to conceive.