Some Ideas and Plans for the Future
I freaking love listening to Elon Musk… it is so very refreshing and inspiring and gets me back on track in terms of mindset!
Everytime I watch him talk and see what he is doing, my competitive edge rises like a storm… thinking of all the rival projects i would do to keep him on his toes and just show the world what is possible.
He often talks about his fears with AI… and so I often think about how we could design a kind of universal dashboard that shows the progress the world is making on AGI as well as what different people and organizations are using narrow AI for. This dashboard would function as the front-end piece to OpenAI… keeping the industry (and potential threats) transparent. It would even go a step beyond that and show people how to create and implement their own AIs… even for people who know absolutely nothing of programming. This way, it ensures the decentralization and equal distribution of power. The world is far less likely to be conquered by AI if no one group, individual or even machine has exclusive access or resources.
Elon also predicts that demand for electricity will sky rocket…and that space travel will be a major boon for the economy as well as the survivability of humanity. However, both of these are not necessarily inevitable.
Though electricity will indeed be used more… it is not a sure thing that it will be fairly distributed or even cleanly derived. Therefore, his push for electric vehicles and solar cities is not just for his own gain.. but for the good of humanity. I agree very much, except that I dont think it would be the responsible thing to do to (help) create a world that primarily runs on electricity. As with all things… diversity is key. If we instead used our current research to explore other methods of energy, we could both power our future of devices as well as introduce redundancy and opportunity; such that no single or even series of disasters could bring humanity to its knees… like how a series of solar flares and nefarious hacks could absolutely destroy our grid-based electricity system today.
Therefore, my rival projects would be to discover, invent, and distribute multiple sources of energy. Anything from catching lightning in a bottle to using advanced kinetic energy to figuring out how to mass produce safe mini-fusion balls or even harness the power of space-time itself. Of course such extreme ideas cant be the focus. While those moonshot ideas stew, I would prioritize the creation of methods for the average person to become completely self-sufficient in their energy needs. Likely by creating materials that meld solar energy with biodegradable recycling… just like nature itself.
Since elementary school I’ve been obsessed with hovercars… so as Elon creates hyperloops and tunnels, I would create highways in the sky for vehicles to glide across in panoramic style. I call these Skyways. They would be massive land (and sea) bridges supported by hoverstruts and electromagnetic roads. They would have some kind of wind force dampeners that could transfer those powerful high altitude (or even storm) winds into kinetic energy which could then be used to generate electricity or other sources.
Of course I’d have to produce my own brand of futuristic vehicles… that will run on air (no.. really… the power of gale force winds will serve as a kinetic propellant). It shall be called the Icarus… With the Model F: an all terrain vehicle with the unique ability to fly through forests. The Model V: a high-end luxury multi-use vehicle for ultimate versatility (it can turn into private jet or even a halo cruiser). And the Model C: for commercial use…cheap yet highly durable and customizable.
Hehehehe
The last big thing Elon often discusses is the future of work. The fear of unemployment rising to unsustainable levels around the world due to the aforementioned rise of AI and machines.
This, I personally see as the wrong focus. I believe the real threat to employment is not machines, but greed… or more specifically the desire to stick to a pseudo-capitalist system of corporatism and centralized systems (banking, electricity, internet, water and even education). I think the proliferation of machines/AI could actually allow more people than ever to find real, sustainable work. Not just be dumb machines doing repetitve tasks, employed at the whims and profits of some company. No. Instead, robots would augment and empower the average person’s ability to provide value.
Even though I was originally a fan of UBI, I must admit that it is not a solution… just a (sloppy) bandaid. Subsequently, I would work to ensure as many people have access to AI and robots as possible. Much like how MOOCs and YouTube/GOogle and so on is spreading knowledge to more people than ever, allowing the average person to learn whatever they want more than any other time in history… The spread of automation would also spread the ability to produce and sell products more than any other time in history.
Already we see examples of this with startups in software. Only just over 10 years ago it was rare for someone to know programming and be able to start a company from an idea… now its so simple that the biggest limit is not starting, but scaling.
And thus I combine all of these and more…
