
AI and the Stoics.
Today is the worst AI will ever be. Hopefully, you too.
A successful day for a Stoic is simple. It’s not about making more money. Or getting more famous, or dazzling more people with your accomplishments. It’s whether or not you got better. -Ryan Holiday
What struck me is how many similarities Stoicism and AI have in common.
Stoicism is a philosophical system that focuses on improving oneself to face the challenges of life, and its principles have a lot in common with the development of artificial intelligence (AI). The goal of Stoicism is to prepare oneself for the challenges that life may present, such as poverty, death, and other misfortunes. Stoics believe that by acquiring knowledge and virtues, one can become better equipped to face these challenges.
Stoics tend to have less drama as well.
Similarly, the development of AI involves creating systems that can learn and adapt to different situations. AI systems are designed to continuously acquire knowledge and improve their performance, much like how Stoics aim to acquire knowledge and virtues to improve their ability to face life’s challenges. Stoicism also emphasizes the importance of self-control and rational thinking, which are essential traits for the development of AI systems which are designed to make rational decisions based on data and logic, and to avoid being influenced by emotions or biases. Moreover, Stoics believe in the importance of living in the present moment and accepting the things that cannot be changed. This is similar to how AI systems are designed to adapt to changing circumstances and make decisions based on the current situation.
AI lacks drama too, because of… Math.