I have argued above that we cannot prevent the Singularity, that its coming is an inevitable consequence of the humans’ natural competitiveness and the possibilities inherent in technology. – Vernor Vinge
Within thirty years, we will have the technological means to create superhuman intelligence. – Vernor Vinge
We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage that makes us regard competition in a deadly light. – Vernor Vinge
Another symptom of progress toward the Singularity: ideas themselves should spread ever faster, and even the most radical will quickly become commonplace. – Vernor Vinge
IA is something that is proceeding very naturally, in most cases not even recognized by its developers for what it is. – Vernor Vinge
I am suggesting that we recognize that in network and interface research there is something as profound (and potential wild) as Artificial Intelligence. – Vernor Vinge
I argue in this paper that we are on the edge of change comparable to the rise of human life on Earth. – Vernor Vinge
But every time our ability to access information and to communicate it to others is improved, in some sense we have achieved an increase over natural intelligence. – Vernor Vinge
In fact, there was general agreement that minds can exist on nonbiological substrates and that algorithms are of central importance to the existence of minds. – Vernor Vinge
Animals can adapt to problems and make inventions, but often no faster than natural selection can do its work – the world acts as its own simulator in the case of natural selection. – Vernor Vinge
When people speak of creating superhumanly intelligent beings, they are usually imagining an AI project. – Vernor Vinge
The problem is not simply that the Singularity represents the passing of humankind from center stage, but that it contradicts our most deeply held notions of being. – Vernor Vinge
When I began writing science fiction in the middle ’60s, it seemed very easy to find ideas that took decades to percolate into the cultural consciousness; now the lead time seems more like eighteen months. – Vernor Vinge
And for all my rampant technological optimism, sometimes I think I’d be more comfortable if I were regarding these transcendental events from one thousand years remove… instead of twenty. – Vernor Vinge
The dilemma felt by science fiction writers will be perceived in other creative endeavors. – Vernor Vinge
The work that is truly productive is the domain of a steadily smaller and more elite fraction of humanity. – Vernor Vinge
