Intense (and perhaps even moderate) human suffering eradicated
Probably, humans remaining empowered
Probably, our species isn’t disempowered by AGI; and
Probably, there isn’t severe inter-human inequality, specifically inequality of power; we don’t have a political elite determining how all other human lives go
Some kind of AGI technological innovation will be able to do 1); not clear to me how we get to 2), as we’ll probably need some kind of political pro-democracy innovation (I don’t think our existing political institutions will get us there).
What this world actually looks like, feels like, is very unclear to me! But if we do both those things, it seems more likely than not that we humans will both want and be able to help animals by abolishing animal exploitation and solving wild animal suffering.
I wonder though—would that kind of world, where humans are empowered but don’t experience intense (and perhaps moderate) suffering—be one where humans cared about animal welfare? I can see the intuition going either way. Either:
a) Extrapolating beyond person-to-person morality is (often) a luxury pursuit and more of it will happen in a post-scarcity world.
b) Caring about animal suffering in the food system and in nature requires compassion, and compassion is rooted in being able to imagine the states of the sufferer. If humans all live minimal suffering lives, they won’t be able to do so.
I need to think about b) more. I see arguments in both directions.
I don’t think I can properly imagine what it’s like to be tortured or eaten alive, and yet the thought of each happening to me or someone else makes me feel some combination of horror, fear, upset and compassion. And the idea of suffering more intense than torture or being eaten alive (if future artificially sentient beings have wider welfare ranges than we do) is terrifying to me.
But if I could never suffer worse than a pinprick, maybe I would stop caring about the most intense forms of suffering. Concerning stuff.
I should have sketched this out more.
In my view, AGI going well for humans should see:
Intense (and perhaps even moderate) human suffering eradicated
Probably, humans remaining empowered
Probably, our species isn’t disempowered by AGI; and
Probably, there isn’t severe inter-human inequality, specifically inequality of power; we don’t have a political elite determining how all other human lives go
Some kind of AGI technological innovation will be able to do 1); not clear to me how we get to 2), as we’ll probably need some kind of political pro-democracy innovation (I don’t think our existing political institutions will get us there).
What this world actually looks like, feels like, is very unclear to me! But if we do both those things, it seems more likely than not that we humans will both want and be able to help animals by abolishing animal exploitation and solving wild animal suffering.
Thanks! That’s clarifying.
I wonder though—would that kind of world, where humans are empowered but don’t experience intense (and perhaps moderate) suffering—be one where humans cared about animal welfare? I can see the intuition going either way. Either:
a) Extrapolating beyond person-to-person morality is (often) a luxury pursuit and more of it will happen in a post-scarcity world.
b) Caring about animal suffering in the food system and in nature requires compassion, and compassion is rooted in being able to imagine the states of the sufferer. If humans all live minimal suffering lives, they won’t be able to do so.
I need to think about b) more. I see arguments in both directions.
I don’t think I can properly imagine what it’s like to be tortured or eaten alive, and yet the thought of each happening to me or someone else makes me feel some combination of horror, fear, upset and compassion. And the idea of suffering more intense than torture or being eaten alive (if future artificially sentient beings have wider welfare ranges than we do) is terrifying to me.
But if I could never suffer worse than a pinprick, maybe I would stop caring about the most intense forms of suffering. Concerning stuff.