I think that digital systems cannot have consciousness, for the same reason as biological systems can’t: consciousness, contrary to your intuition probably can’t exist.
More specifically, Jacy Anthis argued, to my eyes successfully, that even an entity, in principle omniscient and all-knowing could not discover it, because consciousness is subject to a motte-and-bailey fallacy where the bailey is the imprecise claim, and the motte is the precise claim. Given it’s inconsistency, we can realize it cannot exist, even in the mathematical multiverse.
I think that digital systems cannot have consciousness, for the same reason as biological systems can’t: consciousness, contrary to your intuition probably can’t exist.
More specifically, Jacy Anthis argued, to my eyes successfully, that even an entity, in principle omniscient and all-knowing could not discover it, because consciousness is subject to a motte-and-bailey fallacy where the bailey is the imprecise claim, and the motte is the precise claim. Given it’s inconsistency, we can realize it cannot exist, even in the mathematical multiverse.
A link to this view is here:
https://www.sentienceinstitute.org/blog/consciousness-semanticism
If you think this is useful, then you might consider an argument against identity existing as well, from Andreas Mogensen.
Link here:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ejop.12552