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Jun 5, 2023Liked by Aleksandar Svetski

Finally a good piece in a pile of ai hype peddlars. Kudos brother!

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Thanks John!

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Frederick Douglas in his autobiography says that, when he first heard the word “abolition” he didn't even understand the concept. It had never occurred to him that there could be a life for him beyond that of a slave; only learning the magic word unlocked the insight for him.

I think this article of yours, as well as your recent article in BTC Magazine about homogenization, really nails the emerging threat of AI. It's obviously not the superstition of “AGI,” but the control of information to a degree historically unparalleled. Denying future generations access to words like “abolition” is now a real possibility.

To couch it in an economic metaphor, whoever controls AI, controls the “mint” of information itself. They control its authorization and dissemination, which means they can control the range of thought — history itself is up for grabs when records can be altered simultaneously and at scale.

It seems a mechanism for decentralizing, immutably preserving, and cryptographically securing information would be our best defense in such a scenario… 🤔

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