Singularity Summit Explores Future of Superintelligence

The Stanford University Symbolic Systems Program and the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence announced today the Singularity Summit at Stanford, a one-day event free to the public, to be held Saturday, May 13 at Stanford's Memorial Auditorium.

The event will bring together a range of thinkers about AI, nanotechnology, cognitive science and leading futurists to examine the implications of the "Singularity" -- a hypothesized creation of superintelligence as technology accelerates over the coming decades -- to address the profound implications of this radical and controversial scenario.

Noted speakers at the event will include cognitive scientist Douglas R. Hofstadter, author of the Pulitzer prize-winning Godel, Escher, Bach; nanotechnology pioneers K. Eric Drexler and Christine L. Peterson; science-fiction novelist Cory Doctorow; philosopher Nick Bostrom and futurist Max More.

Also on the schedule is Eliezer S. Yudkowsky, research fellow of the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence; Acceleration Studies Foundation president John Smart; PayPal founder and Clarium Capital Management president Peter Thiel; Steve Jurvetson from Draper Fisher Jurvetson; and Sebastian Thrun, Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory director.

Among the issues to be addressed:

Bostrom: Will superintelligence help us reduce or eliminate existential risks, such as the risk that advanced nanotechnology will be used by humans in warfare or terrorism?

Doctorow: Will our technology serve us, or control us?

Drexler: Will productive nanosystems enable the development of more intricate and complex productive systems, creating a feedback loop that drives accelerating change?

Hofstadter: What is the likelihood of our being eclipsed by (or absorbed into) a vast computational network of superminds, in the course of the next few decades?

Kurzweil: Will the Singularity be a soft (gradual) or hard (rapid) take off and how will humans stay in control?

More: Will our emotional, social, psychological, ethical intelligence and self-awareness keep up with our expanding cognitive abilities?

Peterson: How can we safely bring humanity and the biosphere through the Singularity?

Thrun: Where does AI stand in comparison to human-level skills, in light of the recent autonomous robot race, the DARPA Grand Challenge?

Yudkowsky: How can we shape the intelligence explosion for the benefit of humanity?

Don't miss this. The free event will be held in Stanford Memorial Auditorium, 551 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305. Seating is limited. Please RSVP if you plan to attend as far in advance as possible to secure a seat. More information can be found here.

Disclosure: client Ray Kurzweil will be a keynote speaker, known for his work and book on The Singularity. Says Ray, "I believe computers will pass the Turing Test by 2029, and by the 2040s our civilization will be billions of times more intelligent."