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TLDR: Take the population ethics quiz here: https://mdickens.me/pop-ethics/
Population ethics is an oft-overlooked subfield within ethics. Many people hold views that they don't realize contradict each other, or that have strange implications that they wouldn't endorse if they thought about it more.
Not just that—population ethics is a BIG DEAL. A lot of ethical decisions hinge on how you think about changes in future populations....
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I’ve been feeling pretty shaken since the METR report about the Hugging Face incident came out last week. Over the weekend, I wrote up some thoughts on how lonely the AI situation sometimes feels to me. It’s more personal than what I’d usually share publicly, but I thought I’d post it here in case it resonates with anyone else.
I’m very grateful to the man...
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Headline finding: I audited 17 AI Safety Talent programmes. Zero of 17 have published any comparison group, rejected-applicant follow-up, matched control or randomisation. Not one. Every programme that mentions a counterfactual does it by asking participants to self-report.
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At least $70 million...
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I think the article gives the impression that EAs are generally happy for humans to go extinct if they are replaced by happy AIs. But this isn't my impression. EA, at least outwardly, is very concerned about human extinction! Almost obsessively so!
I think a utilitarian can be in favor of humans staying in control and surviving. They might not think AIs will be capable of wellbeing, or might think there is a good chance they will have negative wellbeing, or might not be confident they will create a flourishing future.
What annoyed me most about the Hendryck's article is that he essentially assumes impartial utilitarianism must be wrong because it can lead to a conclusion he (and others) don't like. Impartial utilitarianism also would have suggested to slave owners they shouldn't keep slaves - a conclusion they and others wouldn't have liked!
I would have liked more philosophical discussion about if impartiality is or is not a good moral principle. But I suppose he wasn't interested in getting into that.