There is a theorized point in our development as humans where artificial intelligence will advance so far that civilization will look unrecognizable to our historical ancestors. And as technology progresses at an exponential rate, this point—this Singularity—is set to arrive faster than we can even predict. This is called the Law of Accelerated Returns, and it was posed by Ray Kurzweil as far back as 1999, clarified later in an essay he penned in 2001.

Being on this side of the timeline, it’s imp...