Who's Afraid of AI?: Fear and Promise in the Age of Thinking Machines

by Thomas Ramge

A penetrating guide to artificial what it is, what it does, and how it will change our lives

At a breathtaking pace, artificial intelligence is getting better and faster at making complex decisions. AI can already identify malignant tumors on CT scans, give legal advice, out-bluff the best poker players in the world, and, with ever-increasing skill, drive our cars.

In Who’s Afraid of AI?, award-winning author Thomas Ramge expertly explains how machines are learning to learn, and he questions what today’s explosion of AI capability could mean for



Is it ethical to allow robots - endlessly patient - to replace human caregivers in providing comfort and companionship to the elderly? Since AI feeds on big data, can we prevent its misuse by corporations or the government? Will AI ever be capable of runaway self-improvement? And if “the singularity” does arrive, with AI’s intelligence exponentially outpacing our own, what will become of us when, in many ways, we’re obsolete?

Genres: Nonfiction, Artificial Intelligence, Computers, Science

Audible Audio

First published April 16, 2019

Reviews

[Susana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una breve y completa introducción a la Inteligencia Artificial, ilustrada con muy buenos ejemplos del progreso en la materia.

Una breve introducción solamente.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intriguing light read - perfect for the holidays - that only has one glaring drawback: the title. Some publisher decided to translate the much simpler Man and Machine with the same thoughtlessness as Internet clickbait, stirring up fears when there is little reason to do so, at least for those good readers who don't judge a book by its cover. Machines have come a long way from their Kitty Hawk moment, and while the jury is still out on what qualifies as intelligence in any species, particularly for humans, Ramge offers the hope that AI will let us correct many of the mistakes and oversights we have done for centuries. Or perhaps the titular promise is an elaborate putinplan to tamper with the social scoring model China is on the verge of bringing on-line, and humanity's last gasp will be babble about "baby yoda." 2020 could be a very scary year if this were true!

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent novel! I enjoyed how Ramge delved into many aspects of Artificial Intelligence: its history, future, gradual development, insights, misconceptions, and ethical challenges.

One quote resonated with me, “The digital revolution allows us to put this humanist ideal into practice for the first time in history-by employing artificial intelligence intelligently and for the good of humanity.” An all-knowing AI overlord is not the primary concern at the moment; Rather we must be more worried about weak AI being maliciously manipulated and controlled by the wrong entities. Therefore, we must consider this technology from various angles: the benefits, promises, perils, and misuses. It can be used to discover unknown malignant cancer cells but could also be used to disenfranchise consumers & citizens. It is up to humanity to decide how we will use AI.

Read this if you are interested in learning more about AI at a beginner’s level.

[Joel Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically if you read a book on AI either make sure it's philosophical, written by a futurist or short - otherwise you'll be ploughing lots of energy into something that'll be out of date in a years time, when with AI the world changes yet again. This was written before GPT-4 but talked about some things that we still haven't achieved yet, I'm AI obsessed and it taught me some new things, and it was short - so an all round winner. I'd say it will pretty much be unreadable by any technology enthusiast in 5 years though as a lot of the hypothetical scenarios will be part of every day life and the parts about AI's history will already be well known.

If your reading this review in 2030, how's life there, pretty different or was it all hype?

[Matt Heavner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much of a cursory overview. Maybe for someone who has never heard of or considered AI at all, this would be useful. But I didn't really learn anything new or gain any new perspective reading this. It was short at least!

[Madisen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely informative!! I'll be honest, I mostly picked this book because it is so tiny and cute, and it was just the introduction into thinking about AI that I wanted. Sadly, I do want to pursue genetics at University but maybe I won't be needed in that area :(

[Aiden Feltkamp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great brief history of AI, it's realistic applications, and how it affects us today.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and easy to understand introduction to our possible future with AI.

[Chris Joseph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent overview of the different theoretical aspects to consider with AI.

[Muhammad Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging read, I recommend this book if you want to get your head around what AI is, how it has evolved historically, and why it’s still far away from taking over the human race.

[Buzz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read. Interesting view of where AI may take us and a guide on what to look out for as the worl changes. The language is clear and its easy to read andunderstand.

[Danielle Love · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reads like a bad textbook.

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

It felt like there was nothing new in this book.
It reads like a text book.

[Dr. Tathagat Varma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very well written book that discusses some of the more pertinent issues concerning the use of AI today and the possible scenarios tomorrow. It is a slim book, but packs most of the key issues in surface+1 level.