Answer: In typical human fashion. Decades of looking the other way despite obvious warnings. And a lack of foresight to create any effective legislation. Early thinkers and pioneers in computing like Joseph Weizenbaum and Norbert Wiener sounded an alarm. But we didn’t listen.

So what can we do to stop it now? Apparently not much, according to experts like Dr. Roman Yampolskiy, a computer scientist and “AI safety” expert. That AI will rule the world and make humans obsolete is for him a foregone conclusion. His suggestion — enjoy life while you can.

That is sobering news. It took me a few more hours to get out of bed this morning but I finally managed it, and mostly to compose these words.

AI is everywhere, but its hegemony is not complete. We can still make our own decisions. We can still steer the car in the direction we want to go, provided we’re not in a self-driving vehicle. And we can begin immediately to vote out all our representatives whose only calling card is self-interest.

Here’s something else. We can earnestly show support for 100% human creations while they still exist, like the musical The Further Shores of Knowing. It was inspired to provide a new perspective to counteract the existential nightmares we are facing now.

Despite the dire prediction, I will argue that what you do today still matters. Albert Einstein expressed the view that past, present and future are only a “stubbornly persistent illusion.” Another way to interpret this is that actions are not simply erased. Stephen Hawking believed information is preserved even in a black hole.  And of course the Buddhists believe in karma, that the good or harmful actions that one intends or takes will inevitably have a direct and personal impact in the near or distant future.

The point here is that even in the face of annihilation our actions still have significance. Consider that the level of freedom we enjoy today would never exist if untold numbers of brave souls had not sacrificed their lives in the face of tyranny.

I readily admit these are intense words coming from a fellow who wrote a musical comedy for young and mature audiences. But my partner and I didn’t write it merely to entertain. We wrote it knowing we are standing on a precipice… and there’s still a little time to choose a better way forward.  I hope you’ll take a moment to support our production by donating below.