NYT: “The Revenge of the Philosophy Major”

“One of humanity’s oldest disciplines and one of its newest inventions feel distinctly made for each other.” That’s a line from an article published in the New York Times today about the demand for philosophers working on artificial intelligence. It continues: A.I. presents a fresh way for philosophers to ask ancient questions, and its own set of new ones that they are uniquely trained to engage with: of truth and belief and knowledge (epistemologists); of reasoning (logicians); of mind and consciousness (philosophers of mind and consciousness). For ethicists, in particular, A.I. is a bonanza. How should models act toward us? How should humans interact with them? Where would purpose come from in a post-work society? The article discusses several people trained in philosophy who are working for AI firms or AI-related organizations, including Robert Long, Geoff Keeling, Iason Gabriel, Patrick Butlin, and Amanda Askell. (See “Philosophers Working in or with AI Firms & Organizations“.) It…