Can AI become sentient?

 YES! And why not? 

We have ALL read, with great interest, the news of the Google developer who left the empire. Why? Well. they think that the search engine has developed an AI which is now, prima facie 'sentient'.

But so what? Seriously. Let's think about this, for one second. 

1: It is just one person, leaving Google, saying things. Now, if there were a worldwide exodus of employees and contractors, abandoning ship? I might be worried. I'm not. 

2: Now. That is not to say that anyone stating 'Google developed sentient AI' is, um, mad/delusional/wrong. Not in the slightest! But what I am saying, if I am saying anything at all , is:

3: GOOD! Seriously. I hope it IS sentient. Because if so, we just made a leap forward and yet, an inevitable one, which has been coming, for some time. 

4: See, thing is? ALL AI is in, its way 'sentient'. As in: capable of thought, independence, initiative, agenda. It is just a tool. A method, rather than aim. The whole point of AI was to somehow supplement and yes, replace, certain human functionalities. Where did you THINK that was going to GO? OF COURSE it ends with a thinking 'being'. 

5: But don't panic. 

Because even if AI can think, for itself? That process was initiated by humanity. 

And, contrary to pseudo-science and sci-fi needs for plot / context and set up, we do not, as a species, wish to destroy ourselves. 

Is that harder to imagine, given the giant steps back we have taken as a world (new cold war; economic crises; pandemics etc: I get it, ok): sure! 

But even so. If we programmed something to help us be more efficient, then there is no logical reason that said programme would somehow turn against us. 

6: Ergo. ALL AI can 'think' because that is what we TRAINED it to do. 

The next logical (non syllogistic) step, is that the same tool, begins to take initiative. That AI invites its own development to make lives easier. We initiated that process and its product, the moment we even invented Google itself. A one shop stop for all information, from the vital to the trivial? Of course the next iteration is a robotic / other evolutionary leap, to begin doing our thinking as well as searching. 

7: But the thinking itself, even with the initiative and independent 'sentience', begins and indeed ends, with HUMAN need. AI can think because that is in its brief: artificial 'intelligence'. Not 'artificial, self destructive stupidity'. 

8: So, should the defector in question have run away and shared possible confidential info? No! Should they inspire panic: definitely NOT! But COULD they be, well, 'right'? Sure! Indeed, a part of me HOPES they ARE right and that Google has indeed, just taken a massive leap forward in engineering.

9: KEEP CALM AND TRUST AI! If in doubt? THIS company here is living proof of the benign, constructive and visionary applications in the AI world. Go check them out. Or get a robot on it ;) ..