TJ Madsen is among the founding members of the New Herald Tribune and chairs the editorial board. He worked for national syndicated newspapers in Newark, Philadelphia, and Baltimore before moving to the midwest.
May 13 , 2024
SAN FRANCISCO - In a move that has stunned ethicists and philosophers alike, Sam Bankman, the controversial co-founder of OpenAI, unveiled his latest moonshot idea yesterday - a framework he calls "Basic Human Decency" aimed at encouraging more compassionate behavior across society.
Speaking at the TED2024 conference, the former billionaire cryptocurrency trader turned AI maverick laid out his ambitious vision to a rapt audience. "For too long, we've let pettiness, greed, and a lack of empathy run rampant," Bankman proclaimed. "It's time we took a step back and treated each other with basic human decency."
The core premise is deceptively simple - act with kindness, respect others, and consider the ethical implications of your actions. However, Bankman proposes taking it to a more systematic, measurable level by creating an incentive system complete with a digital token-based economy.
Here's how it would work: Every person would be issued a "Decency Wallet" loaded with an initial allotment of decency tokens. You would then gain or lose tokens based on your behavior in the real world, as evaluated by AI sentiment tracking, crowd-sourced ratings, and a panel of ethicists. The more decent your actions, the more tokens you accrue which could be redeemed for a variety of rewards and privileges.
"Just imagine a world where being a decent human pays dividends," Bankman enthused. "Where racism, harassment, and cruelty actually cost you something tangible. It would realign incentives in a profound way."
The idea drew an animated response, with critics blasting it as a creepy "social credit system" ripe for abuse and authoritarianism. Supporters praised it as a bold, if unorthodox, attempt to elevate moral behavior and human rights in a world increasingly driven by technological overreach.
Bankman remained undeterred, stating "I didn't get where I am by thinking small and playing it safe. Basic human decency is the most important project I've ever taken on - this is just the beginning."
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