For several years now, some of the world’s greatest minds have been warning us about the dangers of artificial intelligence — AI. The public is largely convinced. A new Reuters poll found that 61% of Americans see AI as a threat to humanity’s future. More significantly, AI researchers tend to agree. These are the people who go to work every day and push forward the technology of artificial intelligence. A recent poll showed that half of them admit that they believe AI has at least a 10% chance of causing the extinction of the human race.
Anyone who thinks 10% is a small chance should consider his own life. Would you buy a car if you knew its brakes had a 10% chance of failure? Would you prepare a meal that stood a 10% chance of killing your children or your grandchildren? These people think that AI has a good chance of killing everyone’s children, including their own. Yet they persist in its pursuit. Why? Because they see it as inevitable. The comments I’ve read say things like, “If I don’t do it, someone else will.”
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Bible prophecy does not say that artificial intelligence causes the extinction of humanity. In fact, the Bible teaches about the eternal nature of humans and the human race. But the doomsday opinions of AI researchers point to the level of momentum AI has already gained. Half the people who work in that field think it has a good chance of destroying us, yet they continue. Most of them seem to think we have already passed the point of no return.
AI’s momentum makes it impossible for human regulators to stop it. Recently, some of the world’s best-known scientists and engineers signed a letter calling for a six month pause in the “training” of high-level AI systems. There have been congressional hearings on how to regulate AI — give it “guardrails.”
Those things will come to nothing, and here’s why — China. The People’s Republic of China would see a US pause in AI training as an opportunity to get ahead in a race that will fundamentally change humanity. Can you imagine the US military willingly allowing other nations to get that far ahead? And make no mistake, six months amounts to eons of time in the development of this technology. It’s been slow going for decades, but now it’s happening fast.
Several things in Bible prophecy seem to indicate the end-times use of AI. Happily, none of them involve the extinction of the human race. But they do involve a stunning loss of human rights. For instance, Revelation 13 talks about an economic system based on the Mark of the Beast. It will require all transactions to go through the Mark system. To ensure compliance, the Antichrist’s government will have to surveil everyone, all the time. There aren’t enough people to police humanity at that level, but AI can keep constant tabs on everyone.
AI can monitor the billions of cameras, computers, satellites, cash registers, phones, and everything else connected to it. Future police vehicles will not all be manned. Robotic prowl cars and aerial drones will patrol neighborhoods and business districts. Each will be equipped to look and listen through walls, read every license plate, and use facial recognition on every face. AI will correlate and interpret that massive flow of data. It never sleeps; never takes a break.
AI-powered robots can enforce the laws. Critics of regular police accuse them of favoritism and emotion-based prejudices. But if you defund the police, you still have the problem of crime and criminals. AI robots, on the other hand, have no emotions. They treat everyone the same. They don’t require compensation. And they can be as deadly as needed.
We’re headed into a new world, and we’re not walking. We’re running — sprinting.
Starting thousands of years ago, the Bible described our time. As always, God’s prophecies are proving to be true.
Instead of frightening us, these things should strengthen our confidence in all His promises. So don’t be discouraged. Instead, hold fast to the confession of your hope because He who promised is faithful. (Hebrews 10:23)
