Reading List

General #

  • AI 2027” – Daniel Kokotajlo, Scott Alexander, Thomas Larsen, Eli Lifland and Romeo Dean “predict that the impact of superhuman AI over the next decade will be enormous, exceeding that of the Industrial Revolution.”
  • Situational Awareness: The Decade Ahead” – Leopold Aschenbrenner’s 165-page essay arguing that AGI will arrive by 2027 and trigger an intelligence explosion leading to superintelligence. Also available in pdf.

Congressional Research Service (CRS) reports #

OpenAI Reports #

Ethical and philosophical #

  • “AI as Normal Technology” by Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor. Abstract: “We articulate a vision of artificial intelligence (AI)** as normal technology. To view AI as normal is not to understate its impact—even transformative, general-purpose technologies such as electricity and the internet are ’normal’ in our conception. But it is in contrast to both utopian and dystopian visions of the future of AI which have a common tendency to treat it akin to a separate species, a highly autonomous, potentially superintelligent entity.”

Non-profits #

  • UC Berkeley Center for Human-Compatible AI (CHAI) - Led by Stuart Russell, focuses on value alignment and beneficial AI
  • MIT AI Alignment - Research groups working on various aspects of AI safety
  • Carnegie Mellon University AI Safety groups - Multiple research initiatives on safe AI systems
  • Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) at Georgetown - Policy research on AI governance and security
  • Future of Humanity Institute (has US collaborations) - Works on long-term AI safety challenges
  • AI Safety Institute (AISI) - Part of the US government’s NIST, established in 2023
  • Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI) - Long-standing organization focused on theoretical AI alignment
  • Future of Life Institute - Advocates for safe AI development and funds research

Regulatory frameworks #

Semiconductors #

  • Semiconductors and Modern Industrial Policy By Chad P. Bown & Dan Wang. Abstract: “Semiconductors have emerged as a headline in the resurgence of modern industrial policy. This paper explores the political economic history of the sector, the changing nature of the semiconductor supply chain, and the new sources of concern that have motivated the most recent turn to government intervention. It also explores details of that turn to industrial policy by the United States, China, Japan, Europe, South Korea, and Taiwan. Modern industrial policy for semiconductors has included not only subsidies for manufacturing, but also new import tariffs, export controls, foreign investment screening, and antitrust actions.”

Substacks of note #

  • Hyperdimensional – “A newsletter about emerging technology and the future of governance” from Dean W. Ball.
  • Understanding AI – Tech journalist Timothy Lee’s outlet focused on AI.
  • Don’t Worry About the Vase – Zvi Mowshowitz’s commentary about “AI, policy, rationality, medicine and fertility, education and games.”
  • ChinAI – “Jeff Ding’s weekly translations of writings from Chinese thinkers on China’s AI landscape.”
  • Import AI – “Import AI is a weekly newsletter about artificial intelligence based on detailed analysis of cutting-edge research” by Jack Clark, CEO of Anthropic.
  • Second Thoughts – Steve Newman’s
  • Dwarkesh Podcast

Extras #