Hubert Dreyfus argues that human intuition and perception, fundamental to consciousness, cannot be replicated by computers because the current artificial intelligence research program is fatally flawed. He contends that achieving human-like intelligence in a device necessitates a human-like being in the world, which in turn requires a body akin to ours and social acculturation within a society. This perspective explains practical difficulties in implementing AI algorithms.
Dreyfus critiques the artificial intelligence establishment by positing that intelligence is inextricably linked to embodied existence and social integration. His work suggests that a genuinely intelligent machine would need to experience the world through a physical body and participate in a social environment, mirroring the human condition, to possess the intuitive and perceptual capacities that form the basis of consciousness.
Key concepts
- Human intuition and perception — Basic, essential phenomena of consciousness that computers cannot replicate.
- Artificial intelligence research program — The current approach to AI that Dreyfus believes is fatally flawed.
- Human-like being in the world — The requirement for an intelligent device to exist and interact with its environment like a human.
- Bodies more or less like ours — Physical forms necessary for a device to possess human-like intelligence.
- Social acculturation — The process of learning within a society, essential for developing human-like intelligence.