A book recommended by a friend of mine, Superintelligence talks about machine brains that could arguably surpass human brains in general intelligence, be it by artificial, biological, virtual or other ways.
Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom goes through many hypothesizes to project and offer conjecture about upcoming technological developments that could ignite the upcoming Superintelligence faster or slower, depending on how history will shape up for the current century.
Possible predictions, including the weaponisation of nanotechnology and biotechnology, the nuclear arms race turning into nuclear warfare, particular jobs becoming obsolete and extinct and pathways towards existential catastrophe, or perhaps the replacement of the human species, all are detailed.
Existential risks are indeed a major topic written here, and if the Superintelligence will create a dawn of intelligence proportions blowing virtually all human variations away, how will the world shape up accordingly? What about morality, robotic laws and ethics, the economy and politics, for instance?
Superintelligence goes deep on the matter with a rather pessimistic look, but at the same time, virtues such as collaborations, mathematics and "fail-safe" methods are also written about, and it's an interesting look at present and future challenges to overcome, and to review the eternal questions that humanity has had.
Rating: ***
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