[ExI] Maybe AGI is just the latest conspiracy theory?

[BillK]

This very long article discusses the history and development of AGI.
Basically, asking the question "Is there any 'there' there?".
Or is it mostly just hype?
BillK

<https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/10/30/1127057/agi-conspiracy-theory-artifcial-general-intelligence/>
Quotes:
How AGI became the most consequential conspiracy theory of our time

The idea that machines will be as smart as—or smarter than—humans has
hijacked an entire industry. But look closely and you’ll see it’s a
myth that persists for many of the same reasons conspiracies do.
By Will Douglas Heaven  October 30, 2025

Stripped back to its essentials, the argument for AGI rests on the
premise that one technology, AI, has gotten very good, very fast, and
will continue to get better. But set aside the technical
objections—what if it doesn't continue to get better?—and you’re left
with the claim that intelligence is a commodity you can get more of if
you have the right data or compute or neural network. And it’s not.

Intelligence doesn’t come as a quantity you can just ratchet up and
up. Smart people may be brilliant in one area and not in others. Some
Nobel Prize winners are really bad at playing the piano or caring for
their kids. Some very smart people insist that AGI is coming next
year.
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