Be Careful, Human! Visiting The Misalignment Museum
GUEST POST BY RACHEL HAYWIRE
AI has taken center stage lately. From wild hot accelerationism to apocalyptic doomerism, it seems like everyone suddenly has an opinion on Artificial Intelligence now that OpenAI has let the bot out of the box. AI has even replaced crypto as the topic du jour, and this means that we finally get to have fun again. Victory! Yet what is fun, in the end, without a cautionary tale?
Looking inside The Misalignment Museum
The alignment problem, a core issue with AI, explores the challenge of ensuring that AI systems act in accordance with human intentions. Portrayed in classic sci-fi shows like Battlestar Galactica and milestone films like Ex Machina, the idea that the values of AI could be misaligned with the values of humanity has been a favorite thought experiment for the producers of philosophical media. Eliezer Yudkowsky, now both a prophet of doom and a living meme, has recently appeared on podcasts like Bankless and The Lex Fridman Show in order to warn us about the dangers of accelerating AI and what could happen if — and when — Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) becomes a thing.
GENESIS: IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD by Eurypheus at The Misalignment Museum
Of course, most people have no idea what Eliezar is on about. That is where artists, traditionally the bridge between the nerds and basic bitches, come in to save the day. The Misalignment Museum, located smack in the middle of San Francisco, is a two-story exhibit that educates visitors on the potential dangers of AGI while presenting a fun experience for the entire family.
A sign reading “Sorry for killing most of humanity” in a Courier font welcomes you into a space. It’s reminiscent of a hip-hop music video fused with a corporate workspace striving to be trendy. A player piano, straight out of HBO’s Westworld, sits to the left. Tourists feign interest in the conceptual frameworks as locals exchange whispers and drop names.
PAPERCLIP EMBRACE by The Pier Group displayed at The Misalignment Museum
Will AI turn us all into paperclips?
Probably not, but there’s a sculpture of two people embracing made out entirely of paperclips that was originally featured at Burning Man under the “Sorry for killing” sign. The whole thing has a Burning Man feel, like pretty much all art in the Bay Area. Is there no escape from this monoculture? Might as well enjoy it, then. I can’t help but feel like I’ve become an extra in Everything Everywhere All at Once as I stare at the paperclip sculpture, yet I refrain from getting into a monologue about metaphysics and disrupting the experience.
GATES TO HELL SELFIE SPOT by Eurypheus at The Misalignment Museum
Descending to the lower level is The Church of GPT — a shrine with an occult ambiance that could easily belong at Burning Man too, or perhaps an OTO lodge during a private party if you know what I mean. There is a broom in motion, perhaps a homage to Disney’s ancient Fantasia, and a lively collection of Spam cans. Spam bots, get it? The lines between irony, caution, and classic San Francisco absurdist humor blur. The broom continues its sweeping dance as an endless AI-generated conversation between Werner Herzog and Slavoj Žižek takes place atop a pile of suitcases on a computer monitor straight out of 1995.
There is a tweet from Grimes displayed on the wall because why wouldn’t there be a tweet from Grimes displayed on the wall? A robotic arm writes notes from the perspective of an AI that knows humans are a threat that must be exterminated/annihilated/destroyed. I’m having flashbacks of playing Spirograph from my childhood. Was this how the universe was created? Was it really that simple?
“Sorry for killing most of humanity” is clearly seen from outside of The Misalignment Museum
We head back upstairs, and the curator of the museum sits in what looks like a meditation circle with a few friends and/or spectators. As I pass by, she compliments my dress, and my friend urges me to engage in conversation. I insist that I’m not working today. After all, that’s what AI is for. Her sincerity and passion are evident in her demeanor, and it’s clear that she is the real deal, in contrast to the lemmings taking pictures in the designated selfie area that reads “Abandon all hope ye who enter here” in plastic neon. Yet even the lemmings are here for a reason, and that reason is an interest in AI, which is probably a big deal on a statistical level.
SONOSYNTHESIS by Ali Nikrang, Yoko Shimizu, Ars Electronica Futurelab at The Misalignment Museum
As we exit the museum, armed with paperclips as new members of the doomer cult, I wonder if we’ve moved closer to accelerating AI or if we’ve moved closer to stopping it from killing us or if maybe we’re just having another inside joke with ourselves about something related to Burning Man. I’m happy to be back in the city, yet I contemplate when something truly new and innovative will appear. Back home in my accelerationist group chat, someone is making it easier for humans to build actual AGI, and I’m wondering if I can get a job at their company without having to use GitHub.
How to Visit Misalignment Museum:
Where: 201 Guerrero Street, San Francisco
Hours of Operation: Open to Public Thursdays/Fridays 4pm-7pm; Saturdays 2pm-5pm
Closes 1 May 2023.
TICKETS: www.misalignmentmuseum.com
Private tours upon request
All images are courtesy of The Misalignment Museum
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