Is artificial intelligence (AI) biblically possible?

Answer

Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to a program or computer system that can think, reason, and learn like a human being. This concept has often been depicted in science fiction—such as the droids in the Star Wars movies, which are machines capable of thinking, reasoning, and expressing emotions. In fictional works, AI characters like HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey, the machines in The Matrix, or Ultron from Marvel Comics are often portrayed as villains. The idea of advanced artificial intelligence is linked to the notion of a technological singularity, the moment when artificial creations surpass humans in terms of reasoning, problem-solving, and self-improvement. Despite conflicting hopes and fears, there is currently no evidence to support the feasibility of true artificial intelligence.

Many observers who anticipate the rise of artificial intelligence point to the progress in machine and technology development. They highlight how industrial robots can outperform humans in speed and strength. Calculators can execute operations with absolute precision and much faster than a human. Computers, naturally, can store, retrieve, and manipulate data far more effectively than a person. Advocates of AI often cite instances where computers have defeated human opponents in competitions like chess or the TV game show Jeopardy. Building on this argument, some speculate that technology may evolve to the point where machines can think as well as or even better than the average person.

An analogy that illustrates the limitations of such reasoning involves animals and humans. Comparing machines and AI to humans by saying, “Machines and AI will be superior or more intelligent than humans,” is akin to asserting, “Animals are superior to humans. Cheetahs are faster. Elephants are larger. Birds are more agile.” The issue lies in the fact that these are distinct animals, excelling in different categories. A single AI program might excel in chess or cooking, but it does not encompass the broad range of capabilities and characteristics that define human intelligence.

Or even creating music. However, for AI to be genuinely as intelligent as or more intelligent than humans, a single program would need to excel in all of those areas simultaneously.

Key to comprehending the concept of artificial intelligence is carefully defining terms such as intelligence; in popular portrayals of AI, more common terms are variations of intelligent or more intelligent. Computers often seem intelligent, when in reality, they are performing extremely low-level thinking very rapidly. They are not truly intelligent; they are simply capable of performing certain tasks more quickly than humans can. There are certain tasks they are unable to perform at all. If one defines intelligence in a manner that excludes notions such as morality, emotion, empathy, humor, relationships, and so on, then the term artificial intelligence loses its significance.

This is a particularly crucial point to bear in mind when discussing strategy games like chess or go, where computers frequently defeat even the most skilled human players. Some argue that this is evidence that computers can be more intelligent than humans and may already be so. However, the program that outperforms a human in a strategy game is specifically designed for playing that game. It may emerge victorious, but the human can then exit the room and engage in numerous other activities that the machine is incapable of doing. The software that enables the machine to excel in a trivia game cannot instruct you on how to tie your shoes. Or prepare a sandwich. Or sketch a flower. Or compose a limerick. Nor can it console a sick child, portray a character in a theatrical performance, or view a film and subsequently elucidate the plot to another person. The reality is that these task-specific AI computers are significantly less intelligent than the humans they have defeated in narrow competitions.

Moreover, even the most sophisticated computer still pits human intelligence against human intelligence. On one side stands an individual; on the other side is a machine mechanically tapping into the collective intelligence of many individuals. A computer that triumphs over humans in chess, checkers, or Jeopardy is not “smar

“Better” than the people it defeats. It’s simply superior at achieving specific results based on the rules of that particular game.

The term technological singularity specifically denotes that hypothetical moment when artificial intelligence reaches a critical point, after which it enhances itself without human intervention and surpasses human capabilities. In some scenarios, technological singularity is seen as a blessing for humanity, with all of mankind benefiting from the breakthroughs achieved by a significantly superior intellect. However, in most cases, singularity is dreaded for potentially leading to the downfall of the human race, as portrayed in films like The Terminator and its sequels. A common theme in science fiction involves a computer system that evolves and learns so rapidly that it surpasses human cognition and ultimately dominates the world.

The concept of technological singularity also presupposes that computing power will continue to progress indefinitely. This contradicts our understanding of the natural laws of the universe. The pace of advancement in computing technology eventually encounters the constraints of physics; scientists and computer specialists concur that there is a “hard limit” to the speed at which certain technologies can function. Given that the complexity needed to replicate a human mind is far beyond even theoretical constructs, there is no empirical basis to assert that genuine artificial intelligence is possible, let alone inevitable.

From a more abstract perspective, mathematics and logic also strongly indicate that AI can never supplant the human mind. Principles such as Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorem strongly propose that a system can never become more intricate or capable than its creator. To create an AI superior to a human brain, we would have to fully comprehend and then surpass ourselves, which is logically paradoxical.

Spiritually, we acknowledge our own limitations because, as creations of God, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”, (Genesis 1:27), we cannot surpass God’s creative power (Isaiah 55:8-9). Additionally, God’s portrayal of the future does not seem to encompass any form of technological singularity (refer to the book of Revelation).

Despite the challenges they encounter, researchers persist in striving to advance artificial intelligence, with substantial investments being made in programs that pledge to enhance work in virtual assistants (such as Alexa or Cortana), deep learning platforms, and biometrics. Unsurprisingly, there already exists a religion, known as Way of the Future, initiated by a former Google engineer, which intends to venerate AI and view it as humanity’s guardian and leader. Such futile fantasies are not unprecedented; mankind has frequently been culpable of revering the products of their own labor. The Way of the Future represents merely a contemporary rendition of crafting an idol.

In essence, AI may excel in performing specific, restricted tasks more effectively than a person can, but there is no logical, philosophical, or biblical basis to believe it can be “superior” in a meaningful manner. AI may mimic the cognitive patterns humans employ when we reason, but it can never supplant the skill, agility, and ingenuity of the human intellect. Despite apprehensions and conjectures, the evidence from science, observation, and Scripture dismisses the prospect of genuine artificial intelligence or a technological singularity. Essentially, the notion of AI serves as engaging fiction, but little else.