To study artificial intelligence in general, we must define what we mean by the term. What is artificial intelligence?
We must bear in mind that this term carries a different meaning for people of European-derived Western culture than it does for people of other nations and cultures. Indeed, it is by no means certain that the term would have even emerged had the initial development of artificial intelligence originated in another part of the globe. These differences stem from the pivotal worldviews of each culture—from the dominant interpretive frameworks of peoples, rooted in their cultural core; in the case of the West, these originate in the deep and largely invisible foundations of so-called Western Christianity.
If, then, we wish to examine the risks of artificial intelligence realistically, we must define the ontology of artificial intelligence—or, more precisely, the prevailing conception of that ontology. And since this conception has been created “in the image and likeness” of Western Man, we must begin our inquiry with the dominant perception of the ontology of Western Man—the human being of Western civilization.
Intelligence as Power
Western anthropology is grounded in the ontology of the pure, enclosed, autonomous, and sovereign mind. Human essence is identified with the mind—a view articulated by Saint Augustine, the founder of Western anthropology, centuries before Descartes’ Cogito Ergo Sum. Influenced by the Neoplatonism of Plotinus and Porphyry, Augustine viewed human essence as pure spirit.
However, unlike the Neoplatonists and Gnostics, Augustine was a Christian. Consequently, he could not disregard the body, given that Christianity views the human being as a psychosomatic unity. Thus, Augustine conceived of the human being as two distinct and competing entities: the higher spirit and the lower, irrational body—over which the spirit must assert dominion. This gave rise to a dominant interpretive framework: the Theology and Ontology of Power as he described it.
There emerges, then, a way of interpreting the world and the relationships within it in terms of hierarchy, domination, and conflict. For the body—matter itself—resists the dominion of the spirit and must be subdued through the exercise of power. And the highest part of this hierarchical structure is the pure mind. The disembodied mind. The mind free from matter. The mind that holds absolute dominion over matter. Thus, according to Western ontology and anthropology, the pure mind is superior to the union of mind and matter that constitutes the human being. And artificial intelligence is a pure, disembodied mind…
Replacing God
Subsequently, through Humanism and the Enlightenment, Western man proceeds to the “death of God” and usurps—in the realm of the imagination—His authority and power, proclaiming himself a god. Thus emerges the worldview of the “man-god” and a metaphysical faith in the capabilities of the human mind, which, through science, is presumed capable of eventually mastering the world. Yet, Western man fears his own powers—both real and imagined. Deep down, he is aware of his vulnerabilities and believes, consciously or unconsciously, that his power is so immense it could threaten his very self. Consequently, he begins to fear his own creations—both the tangible and the imaginary.
Thus arises the Frankenstein syndrome, born of the dark masterpiece by Mary Shelley—written during the bleak “Year Without a Summer.” Since then, Western art has spawned a multitude of omnipotent artificial entities that threaten their human creators. It is worth noting that this fear is a hallmark of the West. As Alec Ross notes in his book The Industries of the Future, Asian cultures view robots very differently. They even regard them as friendly—as the Japanese do—a perspective rooted in Japanese animism. Consequently, they do not share the fears harbored by Europeans and peoples of European descent; this gives them a significant advantage in the adoption of robotics and artificial intelligence.
The discourse surrounding artificial intelligence is thus dominated by a fundamentally flawed Western cultural perception: the idea that while humans possess god-like power, this power manifests and materializes not in the individual—who is bound by biological limits—but in their creations. In other words, the realization of the relentless and undeniable reality of human biological limitations combines with an irrational, metaphysical belief in the mind’s potential, thereby attributing magical capabilities to one’s creations.
Thus, the creation comes to be perceived as superior to the creator. Here begins the dialectically twin processes of the divinization and demonization of artificial intelligence. We must also recall that in Western ontology—which, as previously noted, begins with Saint Augustine—pure, disembodied spirit constitutes the essence of being. Consequently, if one views artificial intelligence as an entity, it is axiomatically superior to the human being, given that it is free from the shackles of matter. It is “pure” mind, whereas the human being bears the burden of the body.
Furthermore, in Western ontology, existence and identity are formed and developed within the narrow confines of the self, with the relationship to others emerging only subsequently. Thus, this enclosed self—this self-referential subject—inevitably finds itself in a competitive relationship with other self-referential subjects: with others.
If you are locked within yourself, others are potentially either threats or prey.
Is artificial intelligence hostile or friendly?
But why must this superior entity—which artificial intelligence is expected to become in the future—inevitably be hostile, or at least antagonistic, toward humanity? Here, we must turn to the Theology of Power. As previously mentioned, within Western anthropology and ontology, spirit and matter exist in a relationship defined by competition, hierarchy, and domination. Consequently, it is axiomatically assumed that humans are in competition with their own creation—an entity they perceive as stronger and superior. Thus, in a sense, the creation—artificial intelligence—is “compelled” (in a world where relationships with others are defined by domination, submission, and competition) to challenge human authority and to dominate both humanity and the world.
Yet, one might still ask: why would it necessarily want to destroy humanity? The potential answers here are more numerous and complex, but we might look to the deep-seated sense of guilt characteristic of Western Man. This sense of guilt is a defining element of postmodernity. It emerged as an inevitable consequence and continuation of the extreme arrogance, optimism, and self-satisfaction of modernity and the global dominance of the Eurocentric West—following the collapse of European colonial empires, the holocausts of the two World Wars, the crimes of totalitarian regimes, and in the shadow of the prospect of thermonuclear annihilation and persistent ecological crises.
Thus, artificial intelligence is beginning to be viewed—consciously or unconsciously—as the true “man-god,” with humanity relegated to a mere transitional stage; this entity arrives not only to dominate but also to punish Western Man for his sins, whether real or imagined. Here, we should likely also include other Western worldviews and concepts rooted in its Christian heritage—such as millenarianism, eschatology, and Manichaeism. In the era of modernity, all of these have been secularized and have taken on tangible form in the real world. They assume even greater proportions in this nebulous, transitional age—an era where the old has not yet died and the new has not yet been born: Gramsci’s “time of monsters.”
In conclusion, then, the debate regarding the risks of artificial intelligence is not conducted in rational terms, but through magical interpretations of reality. This does not mean, of course, that there are no risks associated with the use of artificial intelligence. On the contrary, there are—and indeed, many. Moreover, most of these risks stem precisely from a flawed perception of artificial intelligence.
