Will AI Make the World Better or Worse?
If computers and AI took over the world, would we even notice? Today, host Robert J. Marks ponders this question as he continues his conversation with Dr. Donald Wunsch about his experiences with AI and his recent article in the IEEE Computational Intelligence Magazine on artificial general intelligence. In Part 4 of the discussion, Dr. Wunsch argues that computers have already taken over the world without most people noticing. He provides evidence and examples. The conversation also addresses cognitive and emotional processing in AI systems, noting that while machines can simulate emotional recognition, they lack the embodied lived experience humans possess. Wunsch believes that AI represents a transformative force comparable to or exceeding past industrial revolutions. Like the Gutenberg Press, AI can democratize access to important capabilities, though it operates paradoxically—both lowering barriers for ordinary people to accomplish tasks and raising barriers through corporate control of expression tools. Wunsch suggests AI can be used as a means to solve problems and improve the world or cause destruction. It’s a choice we all face.
Additional Resources
- Listen to Part 1 of this conversation: Dr. Donald C. Wunsch: A Level-Headed Approach to AI’s Promise and Peril
- Listen to Part 2 of this conversation: The Ins and Outs of Scaling Up AI: Dr. Donald Wunsch
- Listen to Part 3 of this conversation: Artificial Intelligence: Navigating the Hype, Limitations, and Ethics
- Donald Wunsch, “Artificial General Intelligence Is Nowhere Near, Artificial Specific Stupidity Is Already Here—Policy Implications,” IEEE Computational Intelligence Magazine, November 2025
- Donald Wunsch’s AI news website: CAIAS.mst.edu
