The Technological Singularity

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

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2. Introduction to the Technological Singularity

   • Stuart Armstrong

   Pages 1-8

3. Risks of, and Responses to, the Journey to the Singularity

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 9-9

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   2. Risks of the Journey to the Singularity

      • Kaj Sotala, Roman Yampolskiy

      Pages 11-23

   3. Responses to the Journey to the Singularity

      • Kaj Sotala, Roman Yampolskiy

      Pages 25-83

4. Managing the Singularity Journey

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 85-85

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   2. How Change Agencies Can Affect Our Path Towards a Singularity

      • Ping Zheng, Mohammed-Asif Akhmad

      Pages 87-101

   3. Agent Foundations for Aligning Machine Intelligence with Human Interests: A Technical Research Agenda

      • Nate Soares, Benya Fallenstein

      Pages 103-125

   4. Risk Analysis and Risk Management for the Artificial Superintelligence Research and Development Process

      • Anthony M. Barrett, Seth D. Baum

      Pages 127-140

   5. Diminishing Returns and Recursive Self Improving Artificial Intelligence

      • Andrew Majot, Roman Yampolskiy

      Pages 141-152

   6. Energy, Complexity, and the Singularity

      • Kent A. Peacock

      Pages 153-165

   7. Computer Simulations as a Technological Singularity in the Empirical Sciences

      • Juan M. Durán

      Pages 167-179

   8. Can the Singularity Be Patented? (And Other IP Conundrums for Converging Technologies)

      • David Koepsell

      Pages 181-191

   9. The Emotional Nature of Post-Cognitive Singularities

      • Jordi Vallverdú

      Pages 193-208

   10. A Psychoanalytic Approach to the Singularity: Why We Cannot Do Without Auxiliary Constructions

       • Graham Clarke

       Pages 209-220

5. Reflections on the Journey

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 221-221

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   2. Reflections on the Singularity Journey

      • James D. Miller

      Pages 223-228

   3. Singularity Blog Insights

      • James D. Miller

      Pages 229-244

6. Back Matter

   Pages 245-261

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This volume contains a selection of authoritative essays exploring the

central questions raised by the conjectured technological singularity.

In informed yet jargon-free contributions written by active research

scientists, philosophers and sociologists, it goes beyond philosophical

discussion to provide a detailed account of the risks that the singularity

poses to human society and, perhaps most usefully, the possible actions

that society and technologists can take to manage the journey to any

singularity in a way that ensures a positive rather than a negative

impact on society. The discussions provide perspectives that cover technological,

political and business issues. The aim is to bring clarity and rigor

to the debate in a way that will inform and stimulate both experts and

interested general readers.

• Engineered Negligible Senescence
• Futures Studies
• Intelligence Explosion
• Intelligent Machines
• Technological Singularity
• Technology Acceleration
• Technology Forecasting
• Transhumanism and Posthumanism

“There is a wealth of information here, including hundreds of references to recent research. The editors have done a fine job of collecting and presenting all sides of the AGI issue. The papers are well written, and are all relevant … . this book should be of interest to anyone wishing to learn about the technological singularity and its implications.” (G. R. Mayforth, Computing Reviews, May, 2018)​

• School of Computer and Electrical Engineering, University of Essex, Essex, United Kingdom

  Victor Callaghan

• Economics Faculty, Smith College, Northampton, USA

  James Miller

• Univ of Louisville Dept. of Comp Engrng & Comp Sci, Louisville, USA

  Roman Yampolskiy

• Faculty of Philosophy Littlegate House, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom

  Stuart Armstrong

Victor Callaghan is Professor of Computer Science at the University of Essex where he founded the Robotics and Intelligent Environments research groups, publishing over 300 related articles. He is president of the Association for the Advancement of Intelligent Environments, director the Creative Science Foundation and a founding board member of Sapience, organizations which all study the impact of artificial intelligence on our futures.

James D. Miller is Associate Professor of Economics at Smith College.  He has a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago and a law degree from Stanford.  The author of the books Singularity Rising and Game Theory at Work,  he is interested in how increases in human and artificial intelligences will influence the economy.

Roman V. Yampolskiy is a Tenured Associate Professor in the department of Computer Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Louisville. He is the founding and current director of the Cyber Security Lab and an author of many books including Artificial Superintelligence: a Futuristic Approach. Dr. Yampolskiy’s main areas of interest are Artificial Intelligence Safety and Cybersecurity

Stuart Armstrong is, an Alexander Tamas research fellow at the Future of Humanity Institute, works on formal decision theory, general existential risk, the risks and possibilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI), how AIs can learn humane values, assessing expertise and predictions, and anthropic (self-locating) probability. His booklet “Smarter than Us: the rise of machine intelligence” lays out some the challenges in this area.

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