The intersection of technology and humanity is where I hope to spend my life because I believe technology is the most efficient and reliable tool for solving the world's hardest and most pressing issues. For more on why I think this, Balaji's essay "The Purpose of Technology" is a good start. As we stand before a new age of Artificial Intelligence and Automation, my belief has never been stronger in technology's abilities and pace of acceleration.
My confidence was bolstered this summer when I stayed in Hayes Valley, Silicon Valley's epicenter of AI development. While living there I had the opportunity to attend events across the city featuring projects from engineers and artists alike. One of my favorites was the "intersection of art and technology" which focused on projects and companies incorporating tech into different artistic mediums. From robots that completed physical artwork to digital tools in image-generation, there was an incredible amount of value and creativity from a tiny group of people. The common thread though, was the deep interest and belief in technology.
Around the time I was there, the e/acc or accelerationism movement was picking up traction on Twitter. It rang a bell for me as someone familiar with the work of Effective Altruism, a philosophy advocating a more quantitative utilitarian framework. I'm curious as to how my view on both of these issues evolves with time.
Recently, I've been thinking deeply about utilitarianism and how we can attempt to quantify seemingly non-numerical entities. The challenge of measuring happiness, suffering, or moral value is central to utilitarian thinking. I find myself particularly drawn to the discussion of potential issues that could either strengthen or weaken Peter Singer's claims on utilitarianism.
The question of "relative relationships" seems fundamentally at odds with the belief that we "ought" to do something objectively moral. If our moral obligations shift based on our relationships and proximity to others, can there truly be universal moral principles? I find trouble further articulating this point but will continue exploring this tension between relative and universal ethics.
One area I hope to explore further is meta-philosophy or how to think about and interact with philosophy itself. Understanding the frameworks and methodologies of philosophical thinking seems like a more specific version of learning how to learn, a meta-skill with broad applications beyond philosophy itself.