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Is Richard Dawkins right about AI?
Key takeaways
- Atheist and author Richard Dawkins recently concluded that AI was conscious.
- The reaction to it has been intense, mostly unfavourable, that he is conflating intelligence with consciousness and that no AI, including Claude, is "conscious".
- Gary Marcus, a scientist and prolific author on AI, was typical: "The fundamental problem here is that Dawkins doesn't reflect on how these outputs have been generated.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Atheist and author Richard Dawkins recently concluded that AI was conscious. (Reuters: Chris Keane)
Link copied Share Share article Richard Dawkins, the well-known evolutionary biologist, atheist and author, wrote an article the other day in which he concluded that Claude AI is conscious (he calls her Claudia).
The reaction to it has been intense, mostly unfavourable, that he is conflating intelligence with consciousness and that no AI, including Claude, is "conscious".
Article preview — originally published by ABC Australia. Full story at the source.
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