Note: I work at MIRI, but not on the comms team. I don’t work on the book directly and am writing this post in my personal capacity, but do think it would be great if a lot of people read the book.
Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares have written a book about why artificial superintelligence might cause human extinction. The book is called If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies. It is out September 16th and is available for preorder now.
The book is good
Having read it, I can say it’s genuinely good. While I personally really enjoy Yudkowsky's other writing, I understand why some people find it off-putting or arrogant. I think If Anyone Builds It is much more accessible, it's measured and it doesn’t condescend to readers. It’s also just an enjoyable (although also alarming) read.
This is by far the best explainer of existential risk from AI that I have read. It’s more up-to-date and describes the actual problem better (in my opinion) than other work like Life 3.0, The Alignment Problem, or Human Compatible. I also like some parts of those previous books, but I think If Anyone Builds It does a much better job at conveying the realness and urgency of the problem.
There have been impressive endorsements
You might have been worried that a book with this title and topic wouldn’t be taken seriously. But the book has received many endorsements, from scientists, academics, people in the National Security community, and public figures. This includes many people from outside the AI safety sphere. Some endorsements that I was particularly surprised/impressed by:
- Ben Bernanke, Nobel-winning economist; former Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve
- Jon Wolfsthal, former Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs; former Senior Director for Arms Control and Nonproliferation, White House, National Security Council
- Lieutenant General John (Jack) N.T. Shanahan (USAF, Ret.), Inaugural Director, Department of Defense Joint AI Center
There are many more endorsements, you can see Malo’s post on them here.
Preorders matter
I think it is important that the public, policymakers, and other decision-makers read the book. MIRI is working hard on this. Preorders help a lot with this by helping get the book onto bestseller lists.
A few notes on preordering:
- American preorders count most for bestseller lists
- Bulk orders (e.g., over 50 books) can be penalized for the purpose of bestseller lists. I think orders of around 10 are fine. If you want to order multiple (e.g., 50) copies for your family, office, or school, you can get a discount here.
- Please only buy copies that will actually be read, we aren’t trying to sell computer monitor stands!
You can see options for preordering here (including audio versions).
I pre-ordered the book recently. I took this opportunity to talk to my parents about AI x-risk—I'd been hesitant to talk about it, but they were more receptive than I expected. They've pre-ordered the book as well.