AI systems don’t have a drive to survive. Here’s why

Being switched off isn’t the same as dying.

In the movie ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’, astronauts Frank and Dave don’t realize that the AI controlling their ship is reading their lips as they discuss disconnecting it. [Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Getty Images]

In controlled safety tests described earlier this year, researchers asked AI models to solve a series of simple math problems. Partway through the exercise, the instructors warned the bots that if they tried to solve the next problem, the computer environment they were operating in would be shut down. In some runs, the shutdown occurred as specified. In others, models interfered with........

© Fast Company