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Ask HN: How does artificial intelligence benefit the planet?

1 pointsby markrankinabout 7 years ago

2 comments

tlbabout 7 years ago
Why do we need need human intelligence? To solve problems. Many of the world&#x27;s problems need vast amounts of intelligence to solve, more than we can find people to do. Existing software already helps, and AI has the potential to help more.<p>Some big projects that are vital to the planet or society where AI is likely to help are:<p>- Getting carbon-free power. We need a lot of brainpower to scale up solar panel and wind turbine manufacturing processes. There are many 1000s of engineers working on this now, but it might take 10 or 100x more to solve all the problems before the planet overheats. AI might help make breakthroughs in other technologies, like fusion.<p>- There are about 90,000 scientists worldwide working on cancer. We&#x27;ve found partial cures for some, but lots of people still die. We need 10x or 100x the rate of progress. AI drug discovery and cancer treatment planning have huge potential. The same goes for most serious diseases.<p>Pretty much anything you&#x27;ve read in a science magazine of the form &quot;Technology X could improve Y, but it&#x27;s not ready yet&quot; is a candidate for how the world could be better with AI.
markrankinabout 7 years ago
I have researched and read a book about this topic. I still don&#x27;t see any long term benefit. It sounds like the costs outweigh the benefits.<p>Can you prove me wrong? Why do humans need artificial intelligence? And how can artificial intelligence benefit society and the planet?