[ExI] How new AI economics might change our systems

[Ben Zaiboc]

On 22/09/2026 04:16, Keith Henson wrote:
> On Mon, Sep 21, 2026 at 1:31 PM Ben Zaiboc via extropy-chat <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
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>     On 21/09/2026 21:06, Keith Henson wrote:
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>     On Mon, Sep 21, 2026 at 1:57 AM Ben Zaiboc via extropy-chat <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
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>     > snip
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>     >> I'm starting to think that this 'alignment with humanity' idea is a red herring. As spike says, humanity is not aligned with itself, so how can anything else be?
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>     > Humans became the ultimate top predator. The only way top predators can keep their population from growing too large for the environment they live in is to kill each other (consider lions).
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>     I don't think this can be true, or at least it's not the only reason, when humans are involved.
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> If you have a different model of the evolutionary reason why humans have wars, please express it. One that accounts for the facts more accurately or has fewer assumptions will displace my model. Incidentally, I don't like my model. If you can displace it, good for you.
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>     It's certainly not the reason for the reversal in global population growth we're seeing now. That's not happening because we're all murdering each other
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> Technological change has to a considerable extent decoupled the sex act from reproduction. But I am not sure you can say that the global population is falling. Consider the flow of people out of Africa.


Sorry, you're right, that was wrongly stated. The global population is not falling, the rate of growth is. The population of some countries is falling, though, and in some of those, it's not due to warfare, it's due to reproductive choices made because of increased standards of living.

I don't think your model is wrong, but it's not the only factor involved in changes in population sizes ("the only way top predators ...", above), certainly in humans.

I know that 'human exceptionalism' is not popular in some circles, but nonetheless, humans really are exceptional in many ways (at least to date).

-- 
Ben