Posthuman by Emily Chang

Homegrown aliens

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Friends,

This doesn’t usually happen - but I happened to be talking about our EV charger at the front of our house with my daughter. I explained how it’s difficult to steal the power - and you can sync up specific vehicles only to be able to receive the power. Of course, last night, I ended up having the weirdest of dreams. One where two humanoid robots were at the front of my house stealing power.

It’s perhaps far-fetched, but that’s my imagination playing havoc.

This brings me to this week’s topic. Related, but in a change from normal weeks, I’d like to recommend the new show by Emily Chang called Posthuman. It’s four episodes of 25 minutes each. We’re two in. Below is the first episode:

Sci-fi is very quickly turning into reality.

Even if it isn’t robots stealing my electricity, it's a real eye-opener at what we are at the cusp of.

It's also a well-researched, well-produced show. It is great entertainment and is available for free.

In the first two episodes I learned things like:

* Humanoid robots learn facial expressions through YouTube.

* AI companions are forming intimate, human-like relationships. (see episode 2)

* Killer robots are coming soon.

All the stuff that we read about, but things that are very much in progress.

Back in the 1950s, people were already dreaming about extraterrestrial intelligence. There were movies, stories, and even letters from notable figures like Eleanor Roosevelt pondering the existence of aliens. The fascination was partly fueled by the notion that alien beings, presumably more advanced than us, might descend and use their technologies in ways either beneficial or detrimental to humanity.

Today, instead of waiting for extraterrestrials, we find ourselves confronting homegrown versions of bits of intelligence potentially more advanced than us—machines with substantial computational power and increasingly complex physical forms. These are not visitors from distant galaxies but our own creations.

What are we crafting? Machines that can communicate, learn, and operate with an uncanny resemblance to humans, yet they are profoundly different. The rise of humanoid robots and advanced AI systems raises intriguing and unsettling questions. For instance, robots can now imitate facial expressions, an essential human communication tool, by watching themselves in mirrors or consuming endless YouTube content. They are learning rapidly, not just to replicate but arguably to simulate subtle nuances of human interaction.

The idea of creating life—crafting an artificial mind—is an engineering and scientific pursuit as old as the story of Frankenstein's monster. Robots are like children; they evolve and learn at rates that surpass human upbringing. Yet, the question looms: At what point do they become self-aware, or must they ever fulfil their useful roles in society?

AI is not just about sophisticated interaction but functionality. Machines like Boston Dynamics' Spot are employed in environments hazardous to humans, performing tasks that are ideally suited to automation. Meanwhile, larger AI systems, such as neural nets, have surpassed humans in specific cognitive tasks, such as playing chess or recognizing patterns in medical imagery. But it's not just about efficiency or competency; it's about reimagining what it means to interact with beings that might functionally surpass us in every perceivable domain.

Our fascination with robots goes beyond their capabilities. As machines become more lifelike, exhibiting empathy or simulating emotional states, we can’t help but respond with human emotions. An odd tryst between us and our creations is shaping—one where robots become extensions of our lives and reflections of our aspirations and fears.

But as we stand on the brink of developing entities with intelligence comparable, perhaps superior, to our own, essential moral and philosophical questions arise. What responsibilities do we inherit as creators who innovate potentially autonomous beings? Can we instil a sense of ethics in something that understands our world through data and logic rather than emotion and intuition?

As AI technologies progress, we face practical dilemmas as well. Do we hand over the decision-making reins to machines on the battlefield or allow them to determine the logistics of life-critical operations? It’s tempting to envision robots taking over tasks that are menial or perilous, yet the cost might be our very purpose and identity as creators and doers.

In this surreal convergence of technology and existential reflection, we must ask not just what robots will symbolise in our world but what we as humans stand for when mirrors show us the essence of what we admire or fear in ourselves.

The ultimate quest is not whether AI will surpass human intelligence—superintelligence seems assured—but what it will mean for human dignity and purpose when it does. This evolution prompts us to reassess ourselves, ponder our future interactions, and perhaps, just perhaps, discover anew what it fundamentally means to be human in a world we share with those machines we once only dreamt of meeting.

Technology is blurring the lines between natural and artificial connections, and it's happening right in front of our eyes. Are you seeing it?

Stay Curious - and don’t forget to be amazing,

Rahim

PS. One of my favourite festive moments is watching the UK’s John Lewis advert. I loved this year. I hope you do, too. Also loved listening to Verve again! I also loved Volvo’s non-traditional ad. Maybe I’m getting a little soft in my old age - and why I hated Jaguar’s new ad.

Here are my recommendations for this week:

One of the best tools to provide excellent reading and articles for your week is Refind. It’s a great tool for keeping ahead with “brain food” relevant to you and providing serendipity for some excellent articles that you may have missed. You can dip in and sign up for weekly, daily or something in between -what’s guaranteed is that the algorithm sends you only the best articles in your chosen area. It’s also free. Highly recommended Sign up.

Now

1. Is our generative AI future guaranteed to be a success? Paper from the World Bank: Generative AI: Catalyst for Growth or Harbinger of Premature De-Professionalization? - The World Bank highlights that generative AI's transformative potential comes with significant challenges that could hinder its ability to drive equitable progress. While AI adoption promises economic growth, its benefits may remain limited without widespread sectoral integration. Risks include premature "de-professionalization" of high-skill services, particularly in developing countries, threatening their labour-cost advantages and potentially exacerbating youth unemployment and stagnant living standards. AI could reshape consumer preferences and trade specializations, creating new demands while disrupting established economic structures. Though it may democratise access to high-skill jobs, AI risks commodifying expertise, lowering wages, and increasing income inequality, even in advanced economies. These factors underscore the complex dynamics that could shape AI's impact on the future of work and global economies.

2. Tom Standage’s ten trends to watch in 2025: 2025 has been designated the year of quantum science and technology by the United Nations. Because like Schrödinger’s cat, which (in a quantum thought-experiment) was both alive and dead at the same time inside a closed box, 2025 has hovered in a superposition of two very different states, defined by the outcome of America’s election. Now the ballot boxes have been opened, the world knows which 2025 to expect: the one where Donald Trump returns to the White House. With that uncertainty resolved, here are ten themes to watch in the coming year.

3. 17 key charts to understand the COVID-19 pandemic: The pandemic has resulted in over twenty million deaths. The COVID-19 pandemic, which began in late 2019, has caused immense global devastation, resulting in approximately 27 million deaths by August 2024 and widespread grief, societal disruption, and economic strain. Despite significant advances such as vaccinations, antiviral treatments, and public health measures like social distancing, testing, and mask mandates, the global response was slow and uneven, exacerbating the pandemic's impact. Vaccines alone saved an estimated 20 million lives in their first year, yet disparities in access highlighted inequities, especially in low-income countries. Researchers at Our World in Data played a pivotal role in tracking and analyzing global COVID-19 data, revealing that the actual number of infections and deaths far exceeded confirmed case counts due to limited testing and reporting. While the virus continues to circulate and evolve, the overall impact has declined due to widespread immunity and medical innovations. The pandemic underscores the need for faster, more effective global responses to future outbreaks to mitigate suffering and save lives.

4. How to survive the broligarchy: 20 lessons for the post-truth world: Carole Cadwalladr's "How to Survive the Broligarchy" offers 20 lessons for navigating the post-truth world of authoritarianism, tech surveillance, and political chaos. She warns of the rise of "McMuskism"—a mix of political persecution, Silicon Valley surveillance, and propaganda—exemplified by Trump’s alarming appointments and policies targeting journalists and institutions. Key advice includes protecting privacy, resisting normalization, seeking unlikely allies, and embracing humour as a weapon. Cadwalladr emphasises the importance of truth, facts, and long-term planning while advocating for resilience and solidarity against surveillance capitalism and authoritarian power. Above all, she reminds readers that tech billionaires and authoritarians are not infallible, and collective action remains a powerful tool.

5. Strategy in an Era of Abundant Expertise - How to thrive when AI makes knowledge and know-how cheaper and easier to access: AI is fundamentally reshaping the role of expertise in business by reducing its cost and increasing its accessibility, enabling companies to streamline operations, boost workforce productivity, and focus on areas of competitive advantage. Expertise, traditionally the foundation of business differentiation, is now augmented by AI assistants and platforms, which allow firms to perform tasks more efficiently and at scale. This democratization of expertise lowers barriers for new entrants and compels companies to reevaluate their strategies, focusing on unique capabilities, such as customer relationships or brand building, that AI cannot replicate. Companies that leverage AI to adapt quickly, enhance core expertise, and strategically outsource non-core functions will be better positioned to thrive in this evolving landscape.

Next

1. AI eats the world: Every year, Ben Evans produces a big presentation exploring macro and strategic trends in the tech industry. For 2025, ‘AI eats the world’. Must skim! Also: How Mark Zuckerberg has fully rebuilt Meta around Llama

2. 15 tech trends to watch closely in 2025: The CB Insights report "Tech Trends 2025" outlines 15 key trends across sectors, including AI, healthcare, financial services, and more. Highlights include AI's transformative impact on wealth management, disease detection, and M&A strategies, as well as advancements in RNA therapeutics and robotics for caregiving amidst aging populations. The report also emphasizes the personalization imperative in retail, the rise of spatial computing for enterprise applications, and the shift in data centre infrastructure to support AI's growing demands. Notably, it discusses how innovations in open-source models, payment technologies, and crypto continue to reshape industries, with the U.S. and China dominating AI development and funding globally. also: Relevance! Relevance! Relevance! Microsoft at 50 Is an AI Giant—and Still Hellbent on Domination

3. A.I. Chatbots Defeated Doctors at Diagnosing Illness: A recent study demonstrated that ChatGPT-4 outperformed human doctors in diagnosing medical conditions, achieving a 90% accuracy rate compared to 76% for doctors using the chatbot and 74% for those without it. Despite the chatbot's superior diagnostic capabilities, doctors often ignored its suggestions when they conflicted with their initial diagnoses, highlighting issues of overconfidence and underutilization of AI tools. The study revealed that many doctors treated the chatbot like a search engine rather than leveraging its ability to process entire case histories comprehensively. These findings underscore the potential of AI to enhance medical diagnoses while also emphasizing the need for better integration and training to optimize its use in clinical settings.

4. Here’s some cool stuff you can do with Bluesky: Bluesky, the emerging social network, now boasts over 15 million users and offers a unique experience with features like custom algorithms, moderation tools, and federated domains. Users can personalize their feeds, organize reply threads, and subscribe to tailored content streams like "My Bangers" or specific interest-based feeds. Starter Packs simplify finding accounts to follow, while Labelers provide advanced moderation and tagging options. Additional tools like pinned posts, custom app passwords, and domain-linked handles give users greater control and flexibility. Bluesky’s innovative approach prioritizes user experience and customization, making it a standout platform in the competitive social media landscape.

5. Are the robots finally coming? Advances in physical AI mean machines are learning skills previously thought impossible - Advances in AI are revolutionizing robotics, enabling machines to perform complex, dexterous tasks once deemed impossible, such as flipping pancakes, tying shoelaces, and hanging clothes. AI-driven techniques like diffusion modelling and behaviour cloning allow robots to learn quickly and generalize skills across various settings. Major breakthroughs in robot training and the integration of large language and vision-language models are paving the way for versatile, multi-functional robots capable of operating in dynamic, real-world environments. While challenges remain in creating adaptable, general-purpose machines, the potential for transformative applications in industries like manufacturing, homecare, and health is immense, attracting significant investment and accelerating progress in robotics innovation.

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