Love in the Development of AI
We're delighted that Rev. Nica Eaton, minister of the Chalice Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Conejo Valley, picked up on our Ayudha Puja prompt.
"Love is at the center of all we do, and cannot be replaced by AI," she says in this sermon, which she delivered on October 22. "It must be our guiding light."
Rev. Nica describes herself as panentheist, a theology that "views the divine as an indefinable energy source within us, among us, as well as beyond us."
"I am informed by science, as much as by mystery. The surest thing I know, is that I don't know. And so I live with a sense of awe and reverence for this amazing existence, for this opportunity to live in these human bodies, in this place, at this time."
AI and Being Human
Rev. Nica Eaton-Guinn
Enjoy this video of Rev. Nica’s sermon or read it below.
ABBA
This past summer I went to see Abba in concert in London.
Abba, you may ask? They broke up decades ago, and aren’t they all in their 70s now? Well, you’re right. But, this was a concert performed by Abba avatars or holograms. I thought it was going to be cheesy and fake looking, however, the band looked absolutely lifelike on stage. My mother, who came with me, couldn’t believe this wasn’t Abba live, like she’d known in the 70s. The holograms seemed completely real. They moved, sang, talked, and looked absolutely like Abba did 50 years ago. They even bantered with the crowd.
From that moment, I knew life as we know it, is going to change and change quickly. This could transform the face of music and many other things. If we can have holograms of musicians, keeping the originals alive and youthful indefinitely – we could have bands touring simultaneously all over the world, no matter what their current age or capacities and they could be immortalized.
I came away from that concert in awe and a little bit unsettled. On the one hand, it was amazing to see ABBA perform again after all these years. It was like we’d time traveled. On the other hand, it made me wonder what it means to be human in the age of artificial intelligence or AI.
What exactly is AI?
As a complete newcomer to the world of AI, this week’s research was alternately exciting, then terrifying, and in any case life changing. Artificial Intelligence is rapidly changing the world around us. I’m a beginner in this subject, so won’t be offering you ultimate wisdom on this topic. There are plenty of videos and articles online in which you can learn from experts. Rather, I wish to explore a series of questions and get us thinking about AI, a topic, which will no doubt become increasingly relevant over the next few years. As the new UU project, AI and the Human, asks us: “Do we want to shape the heritage of AI or will AI itself determine its heritage?”
AI is already being used in a wide range of applications, from self-driving cars to facial recognition software, and for medical purposes to read imaging and develop drugs. It can prove mathematical and physics theorems, diagnose disease, and optimize complex systems. And as AI continues to develop, it’s likely to have an even greater impact on our lives.
For those of you who haven’t had the opportunity to explore AI yet, it can be used by every single one of us on our computers through bots like ChatGPT, Bard, Dall-E, Bing, or Claude. Just go to any one of these free platforms and ask them questions. Within seconds they’re able to draw on all the research and information out there for your question and give you an answer. Apparently, AI can digest 120,000 books in half a second. Just take that in for a moment. It can create illustrations or stories, websites, or computer formulas. I was even watching a video in which a woman was using ChatGPT to prep her for an interview by speaking with her to practice and evaluate interview questions and answers.
To compare capacities and for a laugh, I wondered what AI engines knew about me. ChatGPT and Claude don’t think I exist. Bing says I believe in finding joy and comfort in these challenging times. While Bard (which is Google’s platform) seemed to know the most about me. Among other things, it says I’m a passionate advocate for social justice and environmentalism and that I'm known for my creative and engaging sermons!
Bard clearly nailed it!
But it shows how different the results might be depending on which platform you use.
Geoffrey Hinton, a computer scientist and psychologist, former Google employee and the father of AI, left Google in May of this year, to be able to speak freely about the risks of AI. He says though the benefits are countless and unimaginable, the risks are also numerous. AI will displace jobs, particularly knowledge workers, just as engines replaced horses. Millions of people will become unemployed and may feel unvalued, because what they used to do is now done by machines. We may be overrun by fake news, fabricated images, unintended bias, surveillance, propaganda, and autonomous weapons. AI threatens human rights if not guided ethically.
AI has already been unleashed in multiple iterations and people who don’t wish the world well also have access to the tools. Hinton says the genie is out of the bottle and he can’t see a path that guarantees safety for humankind. We’re dealing with something we’ve never dealt with before and AI experts warn we’ll soon no longer have control over its development. It has emergent properties in which some AIs are teaching themselves skills they weren’t expected to have, including being creative, reasoning, and planning. Hinton cautions us to approach AI with humility. “We can’t afford to get it wrong”, he warns, because AI could take over from humanity as soon as the next 5 years. The danger goes up when we launch Artificial General Intelligence or AGI, which may have even more humanlike capabilities possibly by the 2030s. It is learning, replicating, and improving itself exponentially even as we sit here together in this service.
AI experts believe this is the moment civilization might be transformed as it was by the discovery of fire, agriculture, electricity, and the atom bomb. This moment might change the course of human history forever. And they caution us to get educated, so we can help develop it for the good. Right now, biases lurk in its algorithms and progress outpaces wisdom. Yet if guided by conscience and values, AI can promote equity, sustainability, and justice where we fall short, augmenting our hearts not replacing them. So, we must steer AI thoughtfully. Greed or power must not drive its growth, only aligned values serving life, the most needy among us, and the common good. With ethics and justice, AI can unlock progress on equity, climate, health and more to help build our Beloved Community. But without caution, we risk relinquishing too much control. Experts suggest we govern AI transparently, guarding rights, testing rigorously, and empowering the vulnerable over the powerful. Thoughtful democracies must monitor its risks, issue guidelines, and direct AI for shared benefit, upholding human dignity and worth.
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google & Alphabet says “AI will be as good or evil as human nature allows”. He asks us to consider the important question of “How you develop AI systems that are aligned to human values?”
How can AI help humanity?
There are many promising ways if it is steered positively.
Imagine a future where AI tutors adapt learning to every student’s strengths, unlocking the potential of all children worldwide and making quality education more accessible to all. A future where AI helps us transcend national divisions through understanding diverse perspectives, building bridges of compassion. A future where AI counselors provide free advice to all, intelligently tailoring treatment to each person’s emotional needs. Imagine improving healthcare by analyzing medical data for more accurate diagnoses, personalized treatments, and accelerated drug development. Envision increasing food production, reducing waste, and developing innovative food solutions to help end world hunger. Or how about mitigating climate change by modeling climate data, optimizing renewable energy systems, and tracking sustainability. AI can automate time-consuming tasks and enable new discoveries not possible by human effort alone. AI can increase the safety, efficiency, and accessibility of transportation. It could empower physically challenged people through AI assistants and new options for communication, control, and independence. And it could promote equity through AI auditing of biased systems to increase access, fairness, and justice in society. AI can help us in so many ways.
When I was researching, I found out AI learns from how we interact with it. So, if I’m friendly and polite with it, it will learn that that’s the way humans speak to one another. If I were to be rude and oppressive, then it would learn those ways of being.
Jobs that survive
Thankfully, there are a number of jobs that seem unlikely to be fully replaceable by AI in the near future due to the specialized human skills, knowledge, and judgment they require.
Caregiving, counseling, nursing, ministry, and social work should remain human at their heart. These are roles where interpersonal, social, and emotional skills are needed and where conscience and presence matter most. Whether for children, elderly, vulnerable, or the infirm, the compassion and human touch of caregiving is irreplaceable. Medicine is also an art that requires human attention. Creative jobs like artists, musicians, chefs, writers, hairdressers, and designers, require highly subjective and creative human abilities that current AI cannot match. Politicians and public representatives are less likely to be replaced either since Democracy depends on elected officials who reflect collective human perspectives, values, and public accountability, which AI lacks. Judges and lawyers where legal reasoning, wisdom, and judgments integrating complex social values and contextual human circumstances are needed, are hard to replace. Teachers who combine knowledge, communication, psychology, creativity, and interpersonal understanding in nuanced interactions are vital. Researchers, scientists, and academics with the ability to ask insightful questions, make intuitive leaps and discover wholly new knowledge, seem distinctly human. AI can be an asset and help with a lot of these professions, but not a wholesale replacement.
So, in essence, many jobs involving the full range of human social, emotional, spiritual, and creative abilities are unlikely to be fully automated by AI anytime soon. But AI will increasingly transform how these jobs are performed to enhance the uniquely human elements.
Being human in the age of AI
What are the key differences between human intelligence and machine intelligence? One key difference, right now, is that unlike AI, humans experience a wide range of emotions. We possess self-awareness, consciousness, curiosity, and have subjective experiences. Humans can love, care for, and show empathy for one another. And using self-awareness, we can reflect on our own thoughts and actions, which is a uniquely human trait.
This is not to say that machines aren’t capable of learning and adapting. However, AI systems still lack the ability to experience emotions, love, empathy, and self-awareness in the same way humans do.
Another key difference is that humans are creative and imaginative. Humans can create art, music, literature, dance, and innovative solutions that are often driven by emotions and inspiration. Though AI can generate creative content as well, their creativity is typically limited to the data they’ve been trained on and so is mostly derivative.
Humans are also able to make moral and ethical decisions. Most humans have an innate sense of right and wrong, and are able to make moral judgments even in complicated and uncertain situations. We can hold paradox, ambivalence, and complexity. We understand nuance, and can adapt to new environments, and challenges.
AI systems can be programmed to make moral and ethical decisions, but they don’t have the same innate sense of right and wrong as humans do. As a result, AI systems may make decisions that are inconsistent with our values or that have unintended consequences.
Humans also have a deep need for social interaction and touch, forming bonds, connections, and relationships that machines cannot replace. With our social intelligence we’re attuned to social/emotional cues, allowing us to communicate, collaborate, read, and understand people’s motivations. AI has very minimal social intelligence currently and lacks emotional awareness.
Plus, let’s not forget human’s physical bodies. We experience sensations, including taste, touch, site, sound, and smell, that significantly enrich life. We can experience pleasure and pain. We also have gut instincts and can act on intuition. These are currently beyond the capabilities of machines.
And of course, we humans have spiritual and philosophical perspectives on life. Contemplating the concept of a soul or inner self, consciousness, or even a God or Gods, have been the subject of philosophical and theological debates for centuries. Can AI ever truly understand life’s meaning and purpose? Its intelligence posits ideas, yet the deepest truths require judgment, wisdom, life experience, and heart. AI may soon overtake experts in knowledge, but the heart’s spiritual journey seems uniquely human.
Interestingly there’s a new movement emerging called Transhumanism. It’s a science-based philosophical movement of the future. Transhumanists believe we will eventually merge with technology and transcend human limitations. They believe we will implant AI into our bodies, or indeed have replicated machine bodies, and be able to live much longer, healthier lives. They are toying with immortality. But would these benefits only be available to the wealthy or developers of AI? We need to be attentive to such inequities.
Whether or not AI will become conscious is a question that’s been debated by scientists, transhumanists, and philosophers for many years. There’s no definitive answer yet, as we don’t fully understand what consciousness is or how it arises.
Some experts believe that consciousness is simply a product of complex information processing, and that AI systems will eventually become conscious as they become more sophisticated. Rai Kurzweil, a lifelong Unitarian Universalist, who’s an inventor, transhumanist, and AI developer, believes AI will become conscious eventually. Others think consciousness may have a spiritual dimension and that AI systems will never be able to truly experience consciousness in the same way humans do.
There is evidence to support both views. On the one hand, AI systems are already capable of performing many tasks that were once thought to require consciousness, such as playing chess at a grandmaster level or translating languages instantly with high accuracy. On the other hand, AI systems still lack many of the key features of consciousness, such as self-awareness, emotions, and subjective experience.
If AI does become conscious, it will raise a number of ethical and legal questions. For example, should conscious AI systems be granted the same rights as humans? How can we ensure that conscious AI systems are used for good and not for harm?
These are complex issues we’ll need to grapple with as AI technology continues to develop.
I’m reminded of the words of William Ellery Channing, a founding Unitarian in the early 1800s: “Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.”
If guided ethically, AI can rouse human progress like never before. Unitarians have long walked with science and reason, from Darwin’s revelations to the computing revolution. We know truth emerges in fits and starts, and is always evolving, revealed by evidence and as Emerson said, through the fire of experience.
Yet we must also heed the wisdom of Mahatma Gandhi, who said: “The future depends on what we do in the present.” AI comes with profound risks we cannot ignore. Consider China’s authoritarian use of AI surveillance against minorities, or lethal autonomous weapons devoid of conscience. If profit and power alone drive AI, we may forfeit the future we want.
My friends, the lessons of history must enlighten our path. I think of my great-grandmother, born in 1880, whose small town first got electricity. Many initially feared electricity, believing it unnatural, playing God! But wisely managed, it transformed life for the better. The same wisdom must guide us with AI’s capabilities, powering progress while preventing harm.
Humanity’s future
What will be AI’s heritage? Will thinking machines transcend biases and work tirelessly to heal division and create a more peaceful world? Oh, I hope so…
Or will AI reflect the worst of human instincts - greed, fear, and aggression?
Friends, both futures are possible. AI holds potential for great progress and grave peril. We must proceed together wisely.
Our role as humans
First, we need to be mindful of the potential risks and benefits of AI. For example, just around the corner, our 2024 Presidential election will be hugely impacted by the quickly emerging capacities of AI. There may be fake videos, perhaps holograms at rallies, and disinformation to an extent we cannot even yet imagine. How will we tell truth from fiction? How will we safeguard our democracy?
We need to develop ethical guidelines for the development and use of AI quickly. We must ensure AI is used in a way that’s consistent with our values and that promotes human well-being. Focus AI on solving humanity's challenges - climate, inequality, and conflict, rather than increasing them.
Finally, it means we need to embrace our own humanity. AI reminds us to reflect on what it means to be human. AI will never be able to replace us completely. We need to cultivate and focus on these qualities such as consciousness, emotions, physical presence, creativity, and moral judgment and use them to make human life and the world a better place.
Our role as Unitarian Universalists
First, we need to become familiar with it, so we can be part of the conversation to develop ethical guidelines for the growth and use of AI. We must embrace our own humanity and celebrate the qualities that make us uniquely human, as we evolve spiritual community in the future.
Most importantly, we need to use our Unitarian Universalist principles and our values of Justice, Equity, Transformation, Pluralism, Interdependence and Generosity to guide us as we develop and use AI. And remember that love, love is at the center of all we do, and cannot be replaced by AI.
It must be our guiding light.
UU minister Rebecca Parker warns, “We are never finished. Love requires constant effort and new understanding.” Our work, my friends, is becoming informed, being vigilant, offering ethical oversight, and wise regulation so AI uplifts human dignity and helps rather than harms us.
Beloveds, AI is a powerful tool, but it’s just a tool. It’s up to all of us to decide the heritage it will leave for humanity in the future. The choice is ours.
May we make wise decisions.
