Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence : Tegmark, Max by Max Tegmark

Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence : Tegmark, Max Reviews

• 
  Daniel

  I’m sure this book is well written and given the number of positive reviews, has credibilityHowever I really didn’t enjoy it and ended up skimming large chunks of it to the synopsis at each chapter. I bought I having become intrigued by AI after watching the Go documentary on Netflix and wanted to find out a bit about the subject. This book doesn’t really do that (apart from the first few chapters) but is of a societal analysis of potential dystopian effects of AI, which reads like bad sci fi and has very little depthGood book but I’ll stick to the google AI blog
• 
  Robert ‘Bob’ Macespera

  This is a book that has received many accolades. President Obama recommended it in one of his 'lists' (that of 2017), Elon Musk declared it one of the most important books on business (maybe because he Mr Musk is in it, portraited quite favorably) and it has on its cover the mandatory 'New York Times bestselling book'. And yet, after reading it, this apparent consensus doesn't seem fully deserved.The book it's written passionately and its author obviously knows what he's saying. But it's too diverse, it tries to cover many grounds, only to appear in the end with a clear focus, or purpose. The introduction, with the narration of the so called 'Omega Men', seems almost childish it's too cinematographical, with many references to James Cameron. It is confusing, and too obvious, plagued with clichés.Then the book never finds a clear point. It goes from statistics to current affairs, then from science conferences full of illustrious names in which Mr Tegmark participates, to academic physics; and then also to history, religion, etc It never does settle. At some points, it is almost messy, with crossed references. It is a time popular (way too popular) and at times inextricable and difficult to read. Perhaps foreseeing this, the author includes charts with conclusions at the end of every chapter, but these do not help they are sometimes redundant and almost always confusing.The AI is an obvious 'hot' topic, and how it is handled in the short and medium term will help with (or else increase), many of the problems humanity is facing. It has, deservedly, generated a vast bibliography. We, laypeople, need good introductions to the topic. Unfortunately, 'Life 3.0' is not one of those.
• 
  Philip M

  Life 3.0 poses an interesting question: What happens when humans are no longer the smartest species on the planet? Tegmark has written a compelling challenge analysis of the choices facing us as we create ever powerful AI super computers; will they usher in a new era – or will they replace us? This is a tale about our own future with AI.Tegmark covers concepts from computing to cosmology with extraordinary clarity, whilst reminding us that many of these ideas were created by science fiction writers than 50 years ago. And throughout he asks us to consider how we want AI to impact on our lives, jobs, laws and weapons. How will we live with a greater intelligence than our own, of our own creation?He doesn’t offer any simple answers to the challenge, but instead sets the reader thinking about what kind of future we would want to create. He does this in an insightful, unintimidating way that invites you to come to your own conclusions.Life 3.0 is an exciting, accessible read that has helped me think anew about the future in a world with artificial intelligence. Will it be Utopia or a catastrophe?
• 
  RR Waller

  Artificial Intelligence is all around us in its many shapes and forms. Alan Turing was one who set us thinking about the meaning of “intelligence” and what it means to be “intelligent”. Can a machine be intelligent? He created the Imitation Game as a way of thinking about the whole topics.Tegmark poses similar questions but in a world of super computers, computers far in advance of anything Turing could have imagined. Will our future see computers and robots intelligent than humans, their creators? EM Forster wrote a short story on similar lines; John Whyndham did the same.Tegmark Poses similar questions and problems and gives readers some seriously challenging questions to answer. As we continue to create computers with the capacity to learn, will they outlearn their creators, will humans be able to control them or will computers gradually overtake humans as an inferior species?Although a little repetitive in places, nevertheless, it is very thought provoking book. Recommended.
• 
  tatjana

  I don't know why it is a bestseller. If you take out all the non AI related text from the book, then it will be half shorter.The main message in the book is that the smart AI probably will appear during next few decades, but how it will happen and how it will behave, no one knows.