Is Human Being Computable, or Anthropology of Artificial Intelligence. Methodological Aspect

Abstract

The article analyzes the anthropological paradigms of the mainstream approaches to AI development. The article concludes that the principle of computability (quantifiability) first introduced in the early stages of AI development (namely by A. Turing) is still paramount. The article showcases the way this principle is rooted in what Heidegger described as treating humans and the state of being itself as a consumable and ultimately destructible commodity. One tries to quantify the state of being in order to consume it. As a consequence, humanity approaches the creation of a “thinking machine” as an exercise in self-imitation. The article highlights the deficiencies of creating AI via copying human patterns. The article also suggests a viable alternative — a mediatory method, developed by culturally-historical psychology. The latter perceives the thought process not as a brain activity but as a objective act, mediated through sings and speech. This way of thinking leads to a new strategy of AI development — as a smart helping hand for humans. This, however, requires an overhaul in medical, educational, governmental and many other social practices. The author concludes that any AI development is bound to start with a social engineering process, renovating the principles, governing day to day lives. This is why the development of AI is not a purely technological task. Is affects a deeper level of human existence, unfit to be interpreted in numerical terms.