Posthuman Blues

Futurist Ray Kurzweil Pulls Out All the Stops (and Pills) to Live to Witness the Singularity

But the crucial thing that Kurzweil did was to make the end of the human era seem actionable: He argues that while artificial intelligence will render biological humans obsolete, it will not make human consciousness irrelevant. The first AIs will be created, he says, as add-ons to human intelligence, modeled on our actual brains and used to extend our human reach. AIs will help us see and hear better. They will give us better memories and help us fight disease. Eventually, AIs will allow us to conquer death itself. The singularity won't destroy us, Kurzweil says. Instead, it will immortalize us.

I'll say this for Kurzweil: the man has enough optimism to power a small city. (I think he's wrong, mind you, but wrong in an engaging way.)