Ethical Dilemmas in AI Cloning
New tools offer the chance to clone yourself through AI, but what version of you?
Often it seems like there isn't enough time in the day to get everything done. What if we could split and be in three places at once. In fact, what if we could be in a million of places at once?
That is the idea behind creating an AI clone of yourself. New company called delphi.ai has just launched offering the chance to create a clone of yourself, using all the information you choose to provide (for a fee of course).
The Simplification of Human Complexity in AI
What does the idea of "cloning yourself" tell us about ourselves - the idea that we can be codified or to have our entire personalities reduced down to one's and zero's? Other companies offer the chance to clone family members before they die, so that a relationship can continue after their physical selves have departed. How does this enterprise take into consideration we change and evolve overtime?
Can AI Truly Evolve with Us?
There are things that influence our views of the world, which shape and craft our personalities over time. Experiences, events, people we meet, books or tv shows can change our outlook on life and those around us. It seems that an AI clone has little ability to change or evolve as a human would do. Even if my AI clone could learn based on interactions, how could it possibly change in a way that I myself would?
The Limitations of AI in Mirroring Personal Growth
An AI bot created of me when I was in my teens, or twenties or even a few years ago before I had children would have a drastically different outlook on life. There would be difference in what it valued, in what it saw as important and therefore how it responded to questions. Human personality is almost infinitely complex, shifting and layering over time with experience. It is something that is mailable - influenced by different circumstances and events. How can an AI mirror this change? Could an AI clone change its attitude or outlook if it were told about the death of a loved one for example, or being laid off from its job (possibly due to AI)? For better or worse, these kind of experience shape and change us.
The Emergence of AI in Self-Help and Coaching
Judging by the current batch of AI clones on Delphi.ai, much of the use cases currently appear to be self-help guru's, start-up entrepreneurs, or those who generally provide advice or influence. In this case the 'clone' is somewhat of a shallow replica of an outward facing, carefully curated personality. It is a clone that can replicate advice or guidance, more like an interactive blog post than a true clone. Ask Dr Anna Cabeca (OBGYN) about Keto-dieting, or 'high performance coach' Brendon Burchard on career and success. (Most interesting for me is the section which allows you to 'chat' with famous philosophers about their work and ideas).
The Limitations of AI in Mirroring Personal Growth
These interactions, while being good at providing information from a particular perspective, fall short of being human clones in the holistic or rounded sense. They lack a nuance of the reality of being human, a clone isn't going to get pissed off or act snarky because it is tired and you ask too many questions. It isn't going to want some time to itself, to just sit on the couch and scroll aimlessly on its AI phone. Cloning and AI replicate what we think of as admirable traits, but in doing so ignores some of the emotional flaws or faults which round out a personality.
The Romanticisation of AI Relationships
The advent of AI bots for intimate relationships have a similar flaw. An AI programmed to be a girlfriend or boyfriend, is not likely to be argumentative or want to do its own thing. If an AI relationship descended into fighting the AI could just be deleted and started over again.
A robot would not be programmed to break up with a user, and would be unlikely to argue, meaning there is a lack of friction between the user and robot. This removes the natural emotional highs and lows from a relationship [1]. This lack of risk or jeopardy in a relationship, instead being one that is always 'easy' is a hollow representation of what it means to truly have a relationship with someone, be they a friend or a romantic partner.
The Emotional Disconnect in AI Partnerships
If someone gets used to a relationship being easy, having a perfectly curated partner, this risks ruining other 'real' (human) relationships. Some argue that AI relationship could desensitise someone to social empathy, possibly meaning they will be less likely to want to spend the time to care about the emotions or feelings of a human partner [2]. This could limiting their ability to form longer-term relationships.
The Paradox of Effortless AI Relationships
Here is the dilemma of AI relationships. If the point of an AI relationship is for it to always be 'easy' then it will never be something that resembles a true human relationship. On the other hand, if an AI relationship does become difficult, like a human relationship inevitably does, then - what is the point? What advantage does it have?
The Future of AI Cloning: Ethical Considerations and Societal Impact
The technology to create a fully fledged, thinking feeling clone of ourselves might not be here yet. It might take a lot more time to codify a personality that is shaped and changes over time as a human personality does. But we have to think, is that what we want? Is it a worthwhile endeavour to create an AI with these capabilities. The technology is not yet here, and that is probably a good thing.
Some further reading:
[1] See Arkin, R. & Borenstein, J. (2016). Robots, Ethics, and Intimacy: The Need for Scientific Research. In On the Cognitive, Ethical, and Scientific Dimensions of Artificial Intelligence. Matteo Vincenzo D'Alfonso & Don Berkich (eds.), Springer Verlag. pp. 299-309.
[2] Snell, J. (1997). Impacts of Robotic Sex. The Futurist, 32.