Deus ex machina - by Ashley Zhang

In ancient Greek theater, when mortal troubles became too knotted and tangled to resolve, a god would often suddenly descend from above to unravel them. A wooden crane would lower an actor onto the stage to deliver divine resolution, bringing about the happy ending that the audience so craved. Playwrights called this plot device deus ex machina: “God from the machine.” Today, we’re embroiled in our own mortal dramas, and once again we turn our eyes toward machines. Artificial superintelligence has come to represent omniscient judge and omnipotent savior: a machine-god of our own making that watches us at all times, confers judgment upon our actions, and delivers salvation—if it doesn’t turn against us first. Such myths confer salvific power on systems whose internal workings remain a mystery, allowing us to blindly trust in something that we assume to be intellectually superior. Humans have always longed for salvation: a solution that demands no personal sacrifice or moral agony. Dosto

In ancient Greek theater, when mortal troubles became too knotted and tangled to resolve, a god would often suddenly descend from above to unravel them. A wooden crane would lower an actor onto the stage to deliver divine resolution, bringing about the happy ending that the audience so craved. Playwrights called this plot device deus ex machina: “God from the machine.” Today, we’re embroiled in our own mortal dramas, and once again we turn our eyes toward machines. Artificial superintelligence has come to represent omniscient judge and omnipotent savior: a machine-god of our own making that wa