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Many evolutionary scientists, and such philosophers as Daniel Dennett, have pointed out that the human brain is the result of billions of years of evolution.35 Human intelligence is not the special characteristic we think it is, but just another survival mechanism not unlike our digestive or immune systems, both of which are also amazingly complex. Intelligence evolved because it allowed us to make sense of the world around us, to plan ahead, and thus cope with all sorts of unexpected things in order to survive. However, as Descartes stated, we humans define our very existence by our ability to think. So it is not surprising that, in an anthropomorphic way, our fears about AI reflect this belief that our intelligence is what makes us special.

But if we step back and look at life on Earth, we see that we are far from the most resilient species. If we’re going to be taken over at some point, it will be by some of Earth’s oldest life-forms, like bacteria, which can live anywhere from Antarctica to deep-sea thermal vents hotter than boiling water, or in acid environments that would melt you and me. So when people ask where we’re headed, we need to put the question in a broader context. I don’t know what sort of future AI will bring: whether AI will make humans subservient or obsolete or will be a useful and welcome enhancement of our abilities which will enrich our lives. But I am reasonably certain that computers will never be the overlords of bacteria.

35 See, for example, Dennett’s From Bacteria to Bach and Back: The Evolution of Minds (New York: W. W. Norton, 2017).

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