Co-founder and CTO of Celsius, Nuke Goldstein, could not contain his excitement about the exciting new world of the blockchain at a 2021 crypto event.
He stated that working in the cryptocurrency industry is like riding a rollercoaster; it’s exciting but also insane. But you know you are making a difference in the world every morning when you get up.
It’s safe to conclude that Goldstein’s excitement for cryptocurrency has somewhat wanes after two years.
After Celsius filed for bankruptcy in 2022, causing some of its clients to lose thousands of dollars, Goldstein was hired as CEO of the AI marketing startup Raver.AI, which is said to unleash AI’s potential.
Like many others in the crypto space, Goldstein is making a swift transition to artificial intelligence. Many are now trying to remake themselves in an attempt to profit from the blossoming new technology, as funding for cryptocurrency is drying up and prominent figures in the industry, such as Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, are either in jail or facing criminal charges.
Founder Paul Hsu of the cryptocurrency-focused venture capital firm Decasonic told in November that about 20 of the 200 crypto firms the company examines each week are shifting their focus to artificial intelligence.
For many people, it’s been the logical next step following the cryptocurrency meltdown of last year, according to author and journalist Jacob Silverman, who has written extensively on the crypto sector. Many times, it’s just about following the money.
Adding fuel to the fire
While many believe AI will change the world, others fear it may eventually cause mankind to go extinct.
Experts told that the wave of migrants from the cryptocurrency industry could intensify the already raging debate between proponents of expediting AI development and proponents of responsible tech development.
According to Silverman, there is undoubtedly a feeling of mission among many in the cryptocurrency space, and some genuinely believe that converting everyone to Bitcoin will address the majority of the world’s issues.
However, AI really turns up the messianism and utopianism to a whole new level. He continued, There’s a genuine sense that they believe they are doing something really significant.
One person who meets that description is Guillaume Verdon. According to report, the former Google engineer raised some funding for his AI startup Extropic in 2022 from a side business in NFTs.
Verdon, who writes on his X account under the alias “Beff Jezos,” was recently exposed as one of the leading proponents of the obscure Silicon Valley AI philosophy known as effective accelerationism (commonly abbreviated to e/acc).
Verdon said that he’s “just a gentle Canadian” who wants to “build a better future,” and that the “Jezos” character doesn’t reflect his true self.
Effective accelerationists, in general, support unrestricted technical advancement as soon as feasible, regardless of the effects on society.
According to Benjamin Noys, a professor of critical theory at the University of Chichester who has done substantial research on accelerationism, the goal is to push us closer to a form of capitalist utopia where technology is allowed unrestricted use and is free from control and regulation.
The Culture War of AI
Effective accelerationism in the context of AI refers to a mad dash to develop artificial general intelligence, or AGI — a theoretical AI model that would be significantly smarter than humans. In contrast, proponents of AI safety have cautioned that this could have disastrous effects.
Consequently, proponents of e/acc frequently hold strong anti-regulatory views, which they share with the cryptocurrency fanatics currently flooding the AI sector.
Molly White, a former software engineer and crypto researcher, told BI that there is a significant crossover between the crypto community and the e/acc community.
Because of this, proponents of e/acc are frequently strongly opposed to regulation, a sentiment they share with the cryptocurrency enthusiasts who are currently inundating the AI sector.
As former software engineer and crypto researcher Molly White told BI, there’s a strong overlap between the crypto folks and the e/acc folks.
She continued, ideology fits very well with parts of the crypto ideology, as well as the meme culture that was such a big part of crypto, making reference to the frequently aggressive online conversation in which proponents of the industry constantly targeted regulators and skeptics.
The intersection between these two ideologies was evident at a recent “unofficial official” afterparty for OpenAI developer day attendees. Pop artist Grimes performed for a group of enthusiastic accelerationists while banners bearing the libertarian “don’t tread on me” slogan and the “accelerate or die” slogan were being held by the crowd.
Worries about AI’s future
Over the past year, E/acc has attracted a number of well-known backers, including seasoned investors and pioneers of the cryptocurrency space Marc Andreessen and Garry Tan.
Debates regarding how tech companies should develop AI responsibly have also been fueled by this online philosophy. Proponents like Verdon have attacked the OpenAI board, accusing them of being “decelarists” who are impeding the advancement of AI after they temporarily ousted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
Noys cautioned that the philosophy might replace the very real, practical worries surrounding AI with more fantastical science-fictional possibilities, with its emphasis on Terminator-style apocalypses and superintelligent robots.
What appeals to him about accelerationism are the grand science fiction concepts. These tech billionaires and intellectuals are drawn to it because of its glitz and excitement, which Noys claimed gives them a feeling of philosophical authority and position.
What appeals to him about accelerationism are the grand science fiction concepts. These tech billionaires and intellectuals are drawn to it because of its glitz and excitement, which Noys claimed gives them a feeling of philosophical authority and position.
What appeals to me about accelerationism are the grand science fiction concepts. These tech billionaires and intellectuals are drawn to it because of its glitz and excitement, which Noys claimed gives them a feeling of philosophical authority and position.
He went on to say that he believed the issue was that these discourses with their science fiction appeal can overshadow real science and knowledge of things.
It doesn’t seem probable that the flood of previously cryptocurrency enthusiasts will do much for calming the AI’s building culture war, especially as Silicon Valley and the rest of the world struggle with these very real issues.
