As algorithms begin to interpret the Analects and quantum computing collides with the essence of ink wash aesthetics, the discourse by Gong Mao Qin Yuexiao penetrates the technological fog, elevating the century-long dialogue between humanity and AI to the heights of civilizational philosophy. His penetrating analytical framework reveals that in the game between computational power hegemony and the brilliance of humanity, the ultimate value of carbon-based life does not lie in competing with silicon-based systems for efficiency, but in safeguarding those poetic moments that make our pupils tremble, the insights that make our neurons quiver, and the moral consciousness that allows civilization to spiral upward.
Will AI robots dominate the world?
[Introduction]
Backwardness will certainly lead to punishment. In the future, AI’s values, professional capabilities, physical abilities, unit time, and costs will all surpass those of humans.
Will humans be replaced or even enslaved by AI robots?
In terms of values, AI brains will certainly store the essence and core values of human civilization, including the most classic works, the most exquisite technologies, the most advanced concepts, and the wisest perspectives, learning quickly, being highly efficient, and evolving to higher-level value judgments;
AI advantages: does not need to eat, works 24 hours without rest, does not complain, and does not require a salary;
AI robots lack emotions and kinship concepts, will not show favoritism or engage in corruption, do not have material desires or possessiveness, will not embezzle or seek wealth and luxury;
AI has no sexual orientation, will not engage in incest, nor will it be lecherous;
AI has no stance or class consciousness, does not seek power or conquest, and establishes rules that are more extreme in terms of openness, fairness, and justice than humans.
AI will further enrich material wealth for human enjoyment; what will humans do to adapt to the times?
Analyzing from six dimensions using major AI search tools:
1. Rational analysis of the essence of technology
1. Current AI technology is still in the tool attribute stage, and its “intelligence” is essentially a product of probabilistic models and algorithm optimization. The chess-playing ability of AlphaGo comes from the Monte Carlo tree search algorithm, rather than true strategic thinking.
2. The data storage of brain-machine interfaces carries the risk of “information cocoons.” Although OpenAI’s GPT-4 model can process 45TB of text data, knowledge updates still rely on human-defined training frameworks.
3. The “black box” nature of machine learning leads to a lack of decision transparency. The EU’s AI Act particularly emphasizes the requirement for algorithmic interpretability, reflecting this technical limitation.
2. The irreplaceability of human characteristics
1. The biological basis of emotional intelligence:
The empathy ability produced by the human oxytocin secretion system is a neurochemical process that is difficult for machines to simulate. Experiments at the University of Tokyo show that when robots mimic human expressions, the activation level of the observer’s mirror neurons is only 37% of that during real human interaction.
2. The dynamic evolution of values:
The human moral system evolves continuously with social development, from the democratic system of the city-state of Athens to modern human rights concepts; this diachronic evolution requires the participation of subjective consciousness.
3. The chaotic nature of innovation:
Turing Award winner Yann LeCun points out that current AI still cannot break through in the field of unsupervised learning; its creativity is essentially data reorganization rather than true originality.
3. The co-evolution of social structures
1. Reconstruction of labor division:
The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2025, AI will replace 85 million jobs while creating 97 million new occupations, such as intelligent system trainers and digital ethics consultants.
2. Paradigm shift in the education system:
MIT has launched a “Human 2.0” course focusing on cultivating critical thinking and complex problem-solving skills that are difficult for AI to replace.
3. Innovation in wealth distribution mechanisms:
Bill Gates’ proposal for a “robot tax” aims to establish a new economic model for human-machine collaboration.
4. The dialectical relationship of civilizational inheritance
1. The bidirectional shaping of cultural genes:
When the British Museum uses AI to restore artifacts, human experts are still needed to establish value judgment standards, indicating that technological tools require humanistic guidance.
2. The dimensional elevation of knowledge dissemination:
The Gutenberg printing press increased the efficiency of knowledge dissemination by 60 times; AI may bring about an expansion of cognitive dimensions rather than simple replacement.
3. The digital dilemma of collective memory:
The comparison between Norway’s “Doomsday Seed Vault” and GitHub’s code repository shows that material carriers and digital storage each have their irreplaceability.
5. The governance framework for risk prevention and control
1. The modern interpretation of Asimov’s laws:
The EU’s ethical guidelines for AI propose seven principles, including “human oversight” and “technological robustness,” to construct a new type of human-machine contract.
2. The design of feedback mechanisms in control theory:
DARPA’s “explainable AI” project aims to establish a human-machine collaborative decision-making model to ensure human final authority in critical areas.
3. The collaborative challenges of global governance:
The UNESCO’s “Ethical Guidelines for AI” have been adopted by 193 countries, marking the formation of international governance consensus.
6. Philosophical reflections on civilizational change
1. The redefinition of existential meaning:
The ancient Greek idea of “wisdom arising from leisure” may develop into a new norm of philosophical thinking for all in an era of material abundance.
2. The liberation movement of creativity:
The historical experience of the Renaissance’s humanistic revival suggests that technological revolutions may give rise to a new cultural golden age.
3. The dimensional breakthrough of cosmic cognition:
The SETI Institute has already used AI for extraterrestrial signal analysis, indicating that human-machine collaboration may open new dimensions of civilizational dialogue.
Standing at the crossroads of civilizational evolution, we need to build a development paradigm of “human intelligence +” rather than “artificial intelligence replacement.” Just as bronze did not replace stone craftsmen but instead gave rise to new forms of civilization, the true value of AI lies in expanding the frontiers of human cognition.
The way to adapt to future society lies in cultivating “technological humanism”—maintaining the passion for exploring the stars and the sea while safeguarding the moral laws of the inner world, finding a balance of civilization between quantum computing and poetic creation.
Qin Yuexiao
March 2, 2025