Ben Zhao

I would actually disagree, but that's OK. We can have that discussion, right? Look, you're the guy that knows stuff. I'm just asking the questions. I don't know anything about this. No, no. I think this is a great conversation to have because back in 2022 or early 2023, when I used to talk to journalists, the conversation was very, very different. The conversation was always, when is AGI coming?

I would actually disagree, but that's OK. We can have that discussion, right? Look, you're the guy that knows stuff. I'm just asking the questions. I don't know anything about this. No, no. I think this is a great conversation to have because back in 2022 or early 2023, when I used to talk to journalists, the conversation was very, very different. The conversation was always, when is AGI coming?

I would actually disagree, but that's OK. We can have that discussion, right? Look, you're the guy that knows stuff. I'm just asking the questions. I don't know anything about this. No, no. I think this is a great conversation to have because back in 2022 or early 2023, when I used to talk to journalists, the conversation was very, very different. The conversation was always, when is AGI coming?

You know, what industries will be completely useless in a year or two? It was never the question of like, are we going to get return on investment for these billions and trillions of dollars? Are these applications going to be legit? So even in the year and a half since then, the conversation has changed materially because The truth has come out.

You know, what industries will be completely useless in a year or two? It was never the question of like, are we going to get return on investment for these billions and trillions of dollars? Are these applications going to be legit? So even in the year and a half since then, the conversation has changed materially because The truth has come out.

You know, what industries will be completely useless in a year or two? It was never the question of like, are we going to get return on investment for these billions and trillions of dollars? Are these applications going to be legit? So even in the year and a half since then, the conversation has changed materially because The truth has come out.

These models are actually having trouble generating any sort of realistic value. I'm not saying that they're completely useless. There are certain scientific applications or daily applications where it is handy, but it is far, far less than what people had hoped them to be. And so, yeah, you know, how do I believe it? Part of this is hubris. I've been a professor for 20 years.

These models are actually having trouble generating any sort of realistic value. I'm not saying that they're completely useless. There are certain scientific applications or daily applications where it is handy, but it is far, far less than what people had hoped them to be. And so, yeah, you know, how do I believe it? Part of this is hubris. I've been a professor for 20 years.

These models are actually having trouble generating any sort of realistic value. I'm not saying that they're completely useless. There are certain scientific applications or daily applications where it is handy, but it is far, far less than what people had hoped them to be. And so, yeah, you know, how do I believe it? Part of this is hubris. I've been a professor for 20 years.

I've been trained or I've been training myself to believe in myself in a way. Another answer to this question is that it really is irrelevant because the harms are happening to people in real time. And so it's not about will we eventually win or will this happen eventually in the end? It's the fact that people's lives are being affected on a daily basis.

I've been trained or I've been training myself to believe in myself in a way. Another answer to this question is that it really is irrelevant because the harms are happening to people in real time. And so it's not about will we eventually win or will this happen eventually in the end? It's the fact that people's lives are being affected on a daily basis.

I've been trained or I've been training myself to believe in myself in a way. Another answer to this question is that it really is irrelevant because the harms are happening to people in real time. And so it's not about will we eventually win or will this happen eventually in the end? It's the fact that people's lives are being affected on a daily basis.

And if I can make a difference in that, then that is worthwhile in and of itself, regardless of the outcome.

And if I can make a difference in that, then that is worthwhile in and of itself, regardless of the outcome.

And if I can make a difference in that, then that is worthwhile in and of itself, regardless of the outcome.

Very interesting. Okay, let me unpack that a little bit there. The thing that allows me to do the kind of work that I do now, I recognize is quite a privilege. The position in being a senior, tenured professor, and honestly, I don't have many of the pressures that some of my younger colleagues do.

Very interesting. Okay, let me unpack that a little bit there. The thing that allows me to do the kind of work that I do now, I recognize is quite a privilege. The position in being a senior, tenured professor, and honestly, I don't have many of the pressures that some of my younger colleagues do.

Very interesting. Okay, let me unpack that a little bit there. The thing that allows me to do the kind of work that I do now, I recognize is quite a privilege. The position in being a senior, tenured professor, and honestly, I don't have many of the pressures that some of my younger colleagues do.

No, I mean, all of our grants are quite public. And I'm pretty sure that I'm not the most well-funded professor in the department, but I run a pretty regular lab. We write a few grants, but it's nothing earth-shaking. It's just what we turn our time towards. That's all. There's very little that drives me these days outside of just wanting my students to succeed.

No, I mean, all of our grants are quite public. And I'm pretty sure that I'm not the most well-funded professor in the department, but I run a pretty regular lab. We write a few grants, but it's nothing earth-shaking. It's just what we turn our time towards. That's all. There's very little that drives me these days outside of just wanting my students to succeed.