Prepare to worship your AI Overlords

WMGroomAK · September 28, 2017

So this is a bit of an interesting article that Engadget wrote based on a small snippet of an article on Wired (link below). Back in September of 2015, Anthony Levandowski of Google & Uber fame filed paperwork to establish a non-profit religious corporation called Way of the Future. The mission of this religion is "To develop and promote the realization of a Godhead based on artificial intelligence and through understanding and worship of the Godhead contribute to the betterment of society."

https://www.engadget.com/2017/09/28/anthony-levandowski-google-uber-AI-religion-god/

Quote

In a development that wouldn't be out of place in a Black Mirror episode, we could soon be worshipping an artificially intelligent god figure. And this isn't a satirical take on our existing roles as disciples of social media, or the transcendental joy we feel when an Uber Eats delivery arrives. According to state filings uncovered by Wired, in September 2015 disgraced engineer Anthony Levandowski established a non-profit religious corporation called Way of the Future. Its mission: "To develop and promote the realization of a Godhead based on artificial intelligence and through understanding and worship of the Godhead contribute to the betterment of society." In the last two months alone we've seen robots perform funeral ceremonies and AI chips mimic the human brain -- could a Deus ex Machina really be that far behind?

The organization hasn't responded to requests for further information about its activity, but a quick look at Levandowski's resume shows that he'd be a strong contender for divine leadership within an AI-driven faith. He was co-founder of autonomous trucking company Otto, which was bought by Uber in 2016, and he played a pivotal role at Google in developing the self-driving cars that are already on the roads in some parts of the US. Still, his work brings us ever closer to the Singularity -- the so-called day when machines overtake humans in intelligence and life as we know it goes to pot -- so maybe Way of the Future is Levandowski's way of making sure he's got the computers on side when that day comes.

So my natural skepticism makes me wonder whether this organization is truly looking to a Godhead moment with AI or whether it is more of a shell religion to gain tax exempt status for millions of dollars... Either way, at least when our AI Overlord decides to take over, we will at least have one organization ready to worship it.

Wired Article: https://www.wired.com/story/god-is-a-bot-and-anthony-levandowski-is-his-messenger/