Tag: Tesla

The Development of Transhumanism in China – Article by Peter Wang

The Development of Transhumanism in China – Article by Peter Wang

Comments 1 comment

Peter Wang

Editor’s Note: The U.S. Transhumanist Party publishes this fascinating account of the history, current situation, and future prospects for transhumanism in China from our Foreign Ambassador in China, Peter Wang. We in Western countries have encountered far too little information about whether and how transhumanism has been received in China, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and its disruptions. Based on Mr. Wang’s article, it seems that while there are some significant current limitations that have prevented transhumanism’s widespread recognition in China, we can also harbor grounds for hope that this situation will change due to the increasing interest in technological development, as well as the pragmatic, secular, and technologically open-minded attitudes of the Chinese people. Please note that Mr. Wang’s assessments of Chinese history are his own, although we certainly understand why he would characterize some eras of Chinese history in the way that he does. The U.S. Transhumanist Party does not generally take positions on the overall governmental structures and political situations in other countries; internally our members have a wide spectrum of opinions in this regard. The U.S. Transhumanist Party rather may take an interest in the implications of such political situations for the spread of science, technology, and transhumanist values and ideals. In this regard we consider Mr. Wang to have provided astute and nuanced characterizations that aid in our understanding of the situation in China and the ability of transhumanism to make inroads in light of the political and societal realities there – in terms of both opportunities and limitations. 
~ Gennady Stolyarov II, Chairman, United States Transhumanist Party, January 18, 2022

1. Historical Development of Chinese Transhumanism

Ancient Chinese society was dominated by feudalism. The economy was dominated by agriculture, and the development of science and technology was slow or even suppressed. The main achievements of this era were the four major inventions of China: papermaking, gunpowder, the compass, and printing. Why was this so? For an ancient civilization with a history of several thousand years, why was the development of science and technology so backward? The fundamental reason was the idea of ​​imperial power. Ancient China was centered on the emperor, and everything on the Chinese land was owned by the emperor, including the farmers on that land. The emperor was afraid of a peasant revolution and was afraid that others would take the emperor’s place, and as a result successive emperors would use the policy of fools. Instead of allowing farmers to read books, the emperors just wanted the farmers to plant the land every day, like slaves, so that the farmers would have no ability to overthrow the rulers. This idea of ​​imperial power had greatly suppressed the development of science and technology.

In 1949, Mao Zedong established the first democratic, self-improving, unified China in Chinese history: The People’s Republic of China, a stable country; a country without feudal ideas; and a country that serves the people. Only then did China begin to truly develop its own education, technology, and industry. It was aimed for ordinary people to have food to eat, houses to live in, and books to read, and it was also intended for them to be more involved in technology and democracy. However, Chinese politics had hindered the development of science and technology (superhuman science), such as the Great Leap Forward, which severely reduced China’s productivity and starved many people; the Cultural Revolution had destroyed China’s economic development, education, and technology, bringing China back to pre-liberation overnight. These events were relatively unfortunate. Political struggles have severely hindered the development of science and technology (superhuman science) in China.

In 1978, China began reform and opening up. This phase of reform and opening up was China’s greatest era. China has changed from a closed country to an open country. Deng Xiaoping formulated a basic national policy centered on economic construction, which has enabled China’s economy to develop rapidly. At this time, China attaches great importance to the development of education, science and technology, and the economy. At the same time, special attention is also paid to foreign exchanges, and advanced education and technology have been introduced from abroad. In education, a large number of international students are sent to study in developed countries such as the United States, which has cultivated a large number of scientific and technological talents for China; economically, a large number of foreign companies have been introduced to optimize state-owned enterprises and support for private enterprises, so China’s economy has developed rapidly. China’s science and technology, the introduction of advanced Western technology, and scientific and technological talent have all been vigorously developed. While China, which is in line with international standards, has experienced such rapid development in science and technology, China does not yet have transhumanist ideas and corresponding organizations.

In ancient and modern China, there was no transhumanist thought and corresponding organization, mainly because the political thought and system at that time severely hindered the development of science and technology (transhuman science). I believe this will be optimized in the future.

2.The Status Quo of Chinese Transhumanism

Transhumanism has developed very well abroad, with examples such as Google’s artificial intelligence, Tesla’s driverless cars, Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface (Neuralink), and some biological sciences that could extend human life. Compared with foreign countries, the development of transhumanism in China is far behind and is still in its infancy. Most Chinese have not heard of transhumanism, let alone have a corresponding organization. The main reasons are as follows:

1. Lack of information on transhumanism.

There are no media in the country that specifically report on transhumanism. Some mainstream media have no reports in this regard, such as CCTV and local TV stations. Other online media, such as NetEase and Tencent, have reported very little. Some tech media report slightly more points regarding transhumanism, such as 36KR. The lack of transhumanism-related information and articles makes it difficult for the Chinese to understand this new movement. I think it is necessary to establish our own community and write articles to promote transhumanism. Let more people know us and join us.

2. There are few transhumanism-related companies.

Chinese enterprises are mainly state-owned enterprises, and many foreign companies have been introduced. The development of these companies does not rely on innovation and R & D, but on low labor costs in China and government subsidies. There are no biotech companies in China, and there are no technology companies that study human life. Baidu has the best development in artificial intelligence, but it is also a lot worse than Google; Xiao Peng’s driverless car cannot be compared with Tesla’s driverless car. I think that enterprises are the new force for the development of transhumanism. Enterprises use products to improve people’s quality of life, and they use products to spread transhumanism. In the process of transhumanism’s development, the development of transhumanism-related enterprises is very important.

3. The government invested fewer resources.

Compared with foreign investment in high technology, China has invested less, and China has devoted more social resources to politics and people’s livelihood. Of course, the Chinese government has realized this problem over the years, and has begun to increase investment in high-tech fields and encourage people to innovate and start businesses. Many policy benefits, tax benefits, and talent subsidies were given. As a result, Chinese startups and VCs have developed rapidly. The government has also invested many resources in high-tech fields, such as nanotechnology, biopharmaceuticals, artificial intelligence, and high-speed rail. Compared with foreign investment, there is still a gap between these investments, but this situation is expected to improve.

4. There are few transhumanist talents.

The fundamental reason for the lack of transhumanist talents in China is that people do not have access to information about transhumanism, because China lacks writers who can write articles about transhumanism. There are many well-known scientific and technological people in China who are interested in transhumanism, but they lack the time to understand transhumanism. These people are often busy, such as Alibaba’s founder Ma Yun, Baidu’s founder and CEO Li Yanhong, and Tencent’s founder and CEO Ma Huateng. Fewer workers are engaged in this area than could be. First, high-tech work is needed in this area, and transhumanism needs to be recognized. China is a country with a large population, and many people have received university educations. As long as we strengthen the propaganda of transhumanism, I believe there will be more and more transhumanist talents.

5. There is no corresponding organization to lead and promote.

There are no transhumanist organizations in the country. One reason for this is the lack of information in this area, and the other is the lack of talent in this area. I will establish a Chinese transhumanist community and community in the near future to promote transhumanism. As for China’s Transhumanist Party, because of the restrictions of the Chinese government, it can only wait for the right time to be established. Our communities and societies are of great benefit to the promotion of transhumanism in China.

6. The Chinese lack sufficient knowledge of transhumanism-related technologies.

Although China is a big manufacturing power, it is not a strong manufacturing power. A strong country needs innovation and high-end technology to support it. For the research and development of high-end technology, it often needs to invest a lot of resources, but the return rate is very low. Therefore, the research and development of high-end technology in China is often concentrated in the government, the military, and some large companies. Without enough technology and products, ordinary people have little knowledge of transhumanist technology (artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, biotechnology, driverless vehicles, etc.). In this regard, China still needs to work hard.

All in all, China’s transhumanism is still in its infancy and faces many problems and difficulties. However, we believe that transhumanism will develop rapidly in China, because the Chinese are more able to accept new things without the constraints of religious thought. China’s economy ranks second in the world, China’s population ranks first in the world, and China’s science and technology can rival Silicon Valley. Based on this, we believe that transhumanism will develop rapidly in China.

3. The Future Development of Chinese Transhumanism

All in all, I am optimistic about the development of transhumanism in China.

First of all, it is an inevitable trend to have transhumanism-related technologies to improve people’s living standards! People need transhumanism!

Secondly, from the perspective of the development of social civilization, human society has experienced primitive society, slave society, feudal society, capitalist society, socialist society, and will definitely enter the superhuman society!

Well-known scholars in China support transhumanism. Bai Chunli, president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and many well-known persons such as He Chuanqi, the director of the China Modernization Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, attach great importance to transhumanism. With the promotion of these people, transhumanism will certainly develop quickly.

Chinese culture is conducive to the spread of transhumanism. China is an open country and likes to learn new things, so the development of transhumanism in China has no cultural hindrance. Coupled with the fact that the Chinese do not believe in religion, do believe in science, and have no obstacles in the form of religious dogmas, the cultural soil is better than in the West. Many Western religious denominations, because of influence by extreme religious forces and anti-intellectual forces, will oppose the development of transhumanism.

China is increasing its investment in high-tech R & D. From 2003 to 2013, China’s investment in research and development has increased significantly, with an average annual growth rate of 19.5%, far exceeding that of the United States.

UNESCO’s “Science Report 2015: Facing 2030” at Paris headquarters shows that the United States in 2015 accounted for 28% of the world’s investment in research and development, and is still in a leading position, followed by China (20%). There are currently approximately 7.8 million scientific researchers worldwide, an increase of more than 20% by 2015 compared to 2007, of which the European Union accounted for the largest proportion, reaching 22%, followed by China (19%) and the United States (16.7%).

With so many resources and talents invested, I believe that transhumanism will develop rapidly in China! Transhumanism can lead to making better products, and these products can greatly enhance human beings. So, for smart and practical Chinese, they will definitely choose transhumanism!

Peter Wang is the U.S. Transhumanist Party Foreign Ambassador in China. 

Elon Musk and Merging With Machines – Article by Edward Hudgins

Elon Musk and Merging With Machines – Article by Edward Hudgins

Comments 0 Comment

logo_bg

Edward Hudgins

Elon Musk seems to be on board with the argument that, as a news headline sums up, “Humans must merge with machines or become irrelevant in AI age.” The PayPal co-founder and SpaceX and Tesla Motors innovator has, in the past, expressed concern about deep AI. He even had a cameo in Transcendence, a Johnny Depp film that was a cautionary tale about humans becoming machines.

Has Musk changed his views? What should we think?

Human-machine symbiosis

Musk said in a speech this week at the opening of Tesla in Dubai warned governments to “Make sure researchers don’t get carried away — scientists get so engrossed in their work they don’t realize what they are doing. But he also said that “Over time I think we will probably see a closer merger of biological intelligence and digital intelligence.” In techno-speak he told listeners that “Some high-bandwidth interface to the brain will be something that helps achieve a symbiosis between human and machine intelligence.” Imagine calculating a rocket trajectory by just thinking about it since your brain and the Artificial Intelligence with which it links are one!

This is, of course, the vision that is the goal of Ray Kurzweil and Peter Diamandis, co-founders of Singularity University. It is the Transhumanist vision of philosopher Max More. It is a vision of exponential technologies that could even help us live forever.

AI doubts?

But in the past, Musk has expressed doubts about AI. In July 2015, he signed onto “Autonomous Weapons: an Open Letter from AI & Robotics Researchers,” which warned that such devices could “select and engage targets without human intervention.” Yes, out-of-control killer robots! But it concluded that “We believe that AI has great potential to benefit humanity in many ways … Starting a military AI arms race is a bad idea…” The letter was also signed by Diamandis, one of the foremost AI proponents. So it’s fair to say that Musk was simply offering reasonable caution.

In Werner Herzog’s documentary Lo and Behold: Reveries of a Connected World, Musk explained that “I think that the biggest risk is not that the AI will develop a will of its own but rather that it will follow the will of people that establish its utility function.” He offered, “If you were a hedge fund or private equity fund and you said, ‘Well, all I want my AI to do is maximize the value of my portfolio,’ then the AI could decide … to short consumer stocks, go long defense stocks, and start a war.” We wonder if the AI would appreciate that in the long-run, cities in ruins from war would harm the portfolio? In any case, Musk again seems to offer reasonable caution rather than blanket denunciations.

But in his Dubai remarks, he still seemed reticent. Should he and we be worried?

Why move ahead with AI?

Exponential technologies already have revolutionized communications and information and are doing the same to our biology. In the short-term, human-AI interfaces, genetic engineering, and nanotech all promise to enhance our human capacities, to make us smarter, quicker of mind, healthier, and long-lived.

In the long-term Diamandis contends that “Enabled with [brain-computer interfaces] and AI, humans will become massively connected with each other and billions of AIs (computers) via the cloud, analogous to the first multicellular lifeforms 1.5 billion years ago. Such a massive interconnection will lead to the emergence of a new global consciousness, and a new organism I call the Meta-Intelligence.”

What does this mean? If we are truly Transhuman, will we be soulless Star Trek Borgs rather than Datas seeking a better human soul? There has been much deep thinking about such question but I don’t know and neither does anyone else.

In the 1937 Ayn Rand short novel Anthem, we see an impoverished dystopia governed by a totalitarian elites. We read that “It took fifty years to secure the approval of all the Councils for the Candle, and to decide on the number needed.”

Proactionary!

Many elites today are in the throes of the “precautionary principle.” It holds that if an action or policy has a suspected risk of causing harm … the burden of proof that it is not harmful falls on those proposing the action or policy. Under this “don’t do anything for the first time” illogic, humans would never have used fire, much less candles.

By contrast, Max More offers the “proactionary principle.” It holds that we should assess risks according to available science, not popular perception, account for both risks the costs of opportunities foregone, and protect people’s freedom to experiment, innovate, and progress.

Diamandis, More and, let’s hope, Musk are the same path to a future we can’t predict but which we know can be beyond our most optimistic dreams. And you should be on that path too!

Explore:

Edward Hudgins, “Public Opposition to Biotech Endangers Your Life and Health“. July 28, 2016.

Edward Hudgins, “The Robots of Labor Day“. September 2, 2015.

Edward Hudgins, “Google, Entrepreneurs, and Living 500 Years“. March 12, 2015.

Dr. Edward Hudgins is the director of advocacy for The Atlas Society and the editor and author of several books on politics and government policy. He is also a member of the U.S. Transhumanist Party.