The Moral Status of AI: Might God Make a Difference?
A Conversation With John Pittard
12.00–1.30pm | Friday, September 19
Elm Library, 31 Whitney Avenue
As humans build ever more sophisticated AIs, might we one day develop machines that feel, that are capable of suffering or flourishing and thus worthy of moral consideration? Will it be clear when and if this milestone has been achieved, or might we face a situation where there is significant disagreement and uncertainty concerning the moral standing of advanced AIs? Current thinking about these questions, whether in industry or in the academy, typically proceeds from a secular vantage point. But for those who believe that there is a God, how might this belief bear on questions about whether we could (or should) develop machines with intrinsic moral significance?
John Pittard is Associate Professor of Philosophy of Religion at Yale Divinity School.
This event is open to all members of the Yale community. Lunch will be served.
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Causes that diminish the judgment of reason, such as ignorance, or that diminish the free movement of the will, such as weakness, violence, fear, or something of that sort, diminish sin.
—Aquinas, Summa Theologiae