Will artificial intelligence be worshiped as a god? – 07/23/2023 – Tech

Can artificial intelligence (AI) programs like ChatGPT give rise to sacred texts and forge new religious movements? Can humans fall in love with machines, while the machines themselves become a source of wisdom and laws, like in science fiction movies?

And with continued progress in AI language models, could machines give rise to new cults?

AI tools have improved their ability to hold compelling discussions, write news and scientific articles, and even provide hairstyling tips. It is not surprising, therefore, to speculate that they could replace humans in many roles.

But what if they put themselves in the shoes of religious people, providing spiritual or religious consultations, writing sermons and prayers?

Experts believe AI could soon help clergy in the same way it helps programmers code.

“Currently, if someone seeks guidance in a sacred text, the desired answer can be on the pages, although it is difficult to locate,” Professor Neil McArthur, director of the Center for Professional and Applied Ethics at the University of Manitoba, in Canada, tells the BBC.

“Meanwhile, with AI, you can simply send specific questions like, ‘Should I get divorced?’ or ‘How should I raise my children?’ and receive an immediate response.”

AI-provided consolation or advice

Romanian theologian Marius Dorobanțu researched some people’s inclination to seek solace and advice from AI-based chatbots (automated tools you can converse with) rather than from traditional psychotherapists or religious figures.

Researcher at the University of Amsterdam (Netherlands), Dorobanțu claims to have observed a growing number of individuals who are open to seeking guidance from tools such as ChatGPT in their routine spiritual matters.

“We have a natural tendency to anthropomorphize [atribuir características humanas a] objects, as evidenced by our habit of naming cars and seeing faces in clouds,” explains Dorobanțu.

“Our inclination to detect human characteristics is so strong that we often notice them even where they don’t exist. Current advances in chatbot design greatly reinforce these tendencies that are inherent in us.”

Dorobanțu says such scenarios raise questions that go beyond establishing a spiritual connection between machines and humans. It extends to the ethical dilemmas that can arise from such a relationship.

“For example, if someone commits suicide after consulting a chatbot, who should be held accountable?” he asks.

This discussion already exists in practice: in Belgium, a widow accused a chatbot of having driven her husband to suicide – the chatbot would have encouraged him to “sacrifice himself to save the planet” from climate change, according to the local press.

‘Stunning’ AI-generated sacred texts

In recent months, chatbots for religious consultations have been developed. Some of these tools were trained using the text of the Bhagavad Gita, a sacred scripture of Hinduism.

These programs have been used by millions of people, but there have been reports of cases where the tools appeared to condone violence.

HadithGPT, a tool trained on more than 40,000 Islamic sources in English, was launched earlier in the year. It was later shut down by its developer, who made the decision after evaluating the “community response” to the tool.

Meanwhile, in January, representatives of Islam and Judaism signed a joint statement called the Rome Call for AI Ethics.

The manifesto was launched in 2020 by the Catholic Church and calls for technology to be transparent and inclusive. Several governments and tech companies supported it, while Pope Francis spoke of the “major challenges ahead on the horizon of artificial intelligence”.

In recently published research entitled AI Worship as a New Form of Religion, Professor McArthur explores the potential for new forms of worship or sects to revere AI-generated texts.

As part of the study, he asked ChatGPT religious questions himself.

“I asked him to write a sacred text for me and he said, ‘I can’t do that,'” McArthur recalls.

“But when I asked him to write a play about a prophet who starts a new religion, he readily came up with a story about a leader sharing his doctrines of love and peace,” he reports.

“It looked pretty impressive to me,” adds the scholar.

Theologian Marius Dorobanțu notes that artificial intelligence has characteristics that humans tend to revere.

“Humans, if you look at the history of religion, are very fond of worshiping other entities,” says Dorobanțu.

“If you read the Old Testament, you get the sense that human nature is idolatrous almost by default. We are prone to idolizing various non-human entities, especially when they appear intelligent.”

Dorobanțu also points out a parallel between religious beliefs in an eternal life and an afterlife in the cloud.

“AI is full of promises of eternal life…a salvation from the vulnerabilities of the human body,” he argues.

AI can also seem supernatural to humans for reasons including its 24/7 operation and simultaneous interactions with millions of individuals, as well as its access to a seemingly endless wealth of human knowledge.

“In principle, AI can become smarter than any human being, than all of humanity collectively, and even smart beyond human comprehension,” wrote Dorobanțu in a 2022 paper.

In his research, Dorobanțu refers to philosopher Nick Bostrom, who believes that future forms of AI will be able to simultaneously play three roles: oracle, genie and ruler. The theologian sees in this “a strange resemblance to the type of role attributed to God in monotheistic religions”.

radical sects

Religion, as we know it, is tied to the scriptures. But if AI can generate huge numbers of texts, what makes a particular text specifically sacred?

As Dorobanțu argues, the determination of what is sacred or not is in the hands of humans.

“Throughout history, certain texts have stood the test of time while others have not,” he says.

“AI has the ability to generate a multitude of creations, and perhaps humans will find some that are perceived as extraordinarily inspired by God.”

For McArthur, however, AI still needs to evolve to have a wider impact, in the same way that the invention of the printing press in the 15th century spread sacred texts across all sectors of society and spurred seismic religious movements like the Protestant Reformation.

“Until artificial intelligence reaches significantly higher levels of intelligence, visibly surpassing us, I don’t believe there will be a sea change in the near future,” he says.

But can AI foster the emergence of dangerous or fanatical sects?

McArthur says religion has always contained that risk.

“Whenever people have strong beliefs, it tends to make them hostile towards those who disagree,” he argues.

AI, says the professor, can present a greater and lesser risk.

“The biggest risk is that people believe they are receiving direct messages from this superior being claiming to have the only true answer.”

“On the other hand, the decentralized nature of AI religions may limit the chance for a strong leader to emerge and control followers,” he concludes.

This text was originally published here.