A lot of books about A.I. are dystopian, a few are utopian, while this one is... neither? both? Hard to say. The difference between DNN and symbolical models is relevant to the plot, and the futuristic world is crime-free thanks to these AI-boosted robot dogs that inexplicably massacre a bunch of innocent people. The possibility of digital information being a deepfake is present throughout, and one of the characters is this Elon Musk-like tycoon who owns a computational biology company. I thought the love story was kinda blah, but interesting to see A.I. showing up in random novels and being dealt with in a competent and nuanced way.
Interview's pretty interesting. From back when Yudkowsky was more of a techno-accelerationist type. The post also includes an "AI learns new tricks" item.
On occasion in the morning light, when I am still in bed,
a joy seizes my soul, bestows abilities I wish I always had.
So splendid and resplendent is this delight
that brings about a totalizing transformation!
My heart turns clear and innocent;
my mind focuses to a point;
even my hand’s writing improves.
The earth opens itself to confess in a whisper
its place for me.
Worries flee, problems dissolve,
and those that do not
still seem soluble easily, with little effort.
I drink tea with golden honey, read,
dance and laugh and sing inwardly.
I might run the faucet to warm to shower,
and send messages of delight to whatever god
stayed my self-negating hand the night before.
I step off the tile onto the white bath, and
the story goes as it goes as it goes.
The water envelops me. The morning slows.
A shadowed normalcy returns to spirit.
i exit the shower, dripping, heavy headed,
dullest eyes a blur, soporific mind.
It is only still mid-morning as I
dry myself quarter hearted,
slumped and sinking,
to drag these pale bones
through chills,
to my sheetless bed
to sleep.
and when I awaken
in the afternoon
it is dark
again