[ExI] plans for a transhuman utopian movie

[Aleksei Riikonen]

2009/4/5 Florent Berthet <florent.berthet at gmail.com>:
> [...] to make "a great transhuman utopian movie, where
> things actually GO well, and about which people would
> think "Wow, if only we could have that!".

I think there's a good chance to get a good transhuman utopian movie
done at some point. Kurzweil is already making a movie or two with
pretty much this idea, though I fear they will suck (just an unfounded
prejudice of mine). And this I actually see as the most probable
failure scenario for getting a good transhuman utopian
Matrix-level-blockbuster done: too many impatiently done sucky movies
trying to be that successful movie, making everybody (especially
Hollywood big shots) laugh at the idea for a long time.

So I hope that people proceed with their movie plans with a rather
perfectionist frame of mind, are patient (and don't invest too much of
their ego in the project), and don't jump at the first probably
low-quality opportunity to get their big idea out to theaters.

Getting someone like Iain M. Banks involved in writing the movie would
be a dream, btw.

> Then, it could only be a matter of time before some rich folks start
> to fund things like the Singularity Institute and other AGI related
> projects. Because now, obviously, they are not moved by these
> ideas. It seems like we can't convince rich guys to give money
> using clever arguments.

Some smart rich guys have been rather successfully convinced. See e.g.
Peter Thiel < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Thiel >. I don't see
the SIAI as being seriously strapped for cash, and am not sure what
they'd actually do if they got substantially more. Instead of money,
the limiting resource seems to be finding more sufficiently smart,
rational and motivated people. (Or perhaps I just don't understand
SIAI's situation very well.)

-- 
Aleksei Riikonen - http://www.iki.fi/aleksei