Can artificial intelligence develop consciousness?

In our daily use of smartphones and the internet, we increasingly encounter artificial intelligence (AI) in the form of “generative AI”, such as in conversations with chatbots like ChatGPT or through the creation of multimedia content with a constantly growing number of technical tools.

Opportunities and risks of AI

These technical tools are becoming ever easier to use and can now produce deceptively real “deepfakes” – images, videos or audio with manipulated content of real people and objects in actually existing environments. More traditional applications such as online shopping or music streaming are increasingly controlled by AI algorithms in the background. In online customer service, for example, you almost always communicate with a chatbot as the first point of contact.

The spectrum of possible scenarios about the future of AI could not be broader: On one side, some are convinced that AI could mean the end of human civilization (e.g. Noah Harari's “AI and the Future of Humanity”). On the other hand, there is hope that AI will continuously improve and eventually master all previously unsolvable problems (e.g. Vinod Khsola in his “Global Race in AI”).

These visions of the future of AI coincide with the rapidly increasing capabilities of such AI systems, leading to the increasingly discussed emergence of “artificial general intelligence” (AGI). From such a developmental stage, an AI could display human-like cognitive abilities while developing creativity and consciousness, according to this view.

But is creating a truly creative, thinking artificial intelligence fundamentally possible? Technically speaking, we are still pretty much at the beginning of the AI era. The Large Language Models behind major chatbots like ChatGPT, Perplexity or Claude are currently not yet capable of permanently acquiring new, current knowledge. At their core, these "Foundation Models" are merely based on a sophisticated prediction of which word is most likely to follow a previous word in a given context. They are based on firmly trained foundations that require gigantic amounts of data and energy for initial training and can then be adapted to specific knowledge domains or tasks through “fine-tuning”. Thus, AI systems currently lag far behind the capabilities of a human brain.

But what might the future look like? With the rapid development of increasingly powerful chips, much is conceivable. What could an AI-controlled robot accomplish that could process both acoustic and visual information in real time while also being able to move and interact with its environment? Given existing technical implementations, this thought can somewhat unsettling.

Let's now consider the topic of "conscious intelligence" from a different perspective.

How does consciousness arise?

An ancient question emerges here, one that many generations of philosophers and scientists have grappled with: What is human consciousness, and how does it actually come about? Without claiming to be able to explain these great questions even remotely here – there seems to be some agreement on at least one point: it has something to do with the brain. One could now view artificial intelligence as a kind of greatly simplified artificial brain, since in both cases networks exist between organic or artificial neurons. Now one can ask what happens when such a network is continuously enlarged and the networking is increasingly densified. Would this eventually bring consciousness to life? Does consciousness arise spontaneously as a consequence of the complexity of a neural network?

At least human consciousness seems to stem from another level according to Bahá'í teachings:

The foremost degree of comprehension in the world of nature is that of the rational soul. This power and comprehension is shared in common by all men (...). In the creation of God, the rational soul of man encompasses and is distinguished above all other created things: It is by virtue of its nobility and distinction that it encompasses them all. Through the power of the rational soul, man can discover the realities of things, comprehend their properties, and penetrate the mysteries of existence. All the sciences, branches of learning, arts, inventions, institutions, undertakings, and discoveries have resulted from the comprehension of the rational soul. These were once impenetrable secrets, hidden mysteries, and unknown realities, and the rational soul gradually discovered them and brought them out of the invisible plane into the realm of the visible. This is the greatest power of comprehension in the world of nature, and the uttermost limit of its flight is to comprehend the realities, signs, and properties of contingent things.

Abdu'l Baha, Answered Questions

The secret of the human soul

As in many religious scriptures, the concept of the "soul" comes into play here. We thereby expand the classical scientific perspective on human capabilities with an additional dimension. The emergence of consciousness and reason is, from a religious viewpoint, attributable to the workings of the human "rational soul" and not the result of a system of networked neurons.

The human soul is not located within the body but exists outside of space and time. Nevertheless, it is mysteriously connected to the body:

The rational soul, or the human spirit, does not subsist through this body by inherence—that is to say, it does not enter it; for inherence and entrance are characteristics of bodies, and the rational soul is sanctified above this. It never entered this body to begin with, that it should require, upon leaving it, some other abode. No, the connection of the spirit with the body is even as the connection of this lamp with a mirror. If the mirror is polished and perfected, the light of the lamp appears therein, and if the mirror is broken or covered with dust, the light remains concealed.

Abdu'l Baha, Answered Questions

In this view, the human brain acts like a mirror in relation to the "light" emanating from the described rational soul, thereby enabling human thinking capacity. We thus have a clear distinguishing feature from artificial intelligence – and incidentally, a beautiful illustration of the soul's immortality: something that does not exist "in" matter does not have to perish with it.

Amazing achievements in the animal world

If human and artificial intelligence don't stand on the same level regarding consciousness and reason, how does it relate to the intelligence and capabilities of animals? Animals "function" very similarly to humans regarding their sensory perception, information processing, and resulting emotional reactions. According to Baha'i scriptures, however, animals don't seem to possess capabilities comparable to humans for conscious action:

The world of nature is the kingdom of the animal. In its natural condition and plane of limitation the animal is perfect (...). They are without education or training; they have no power of abstract reasoning and intellectual ideals (...). The animal can neither recognize nor apprehend the spiritual power of man and makes no distinction between man and itself, for the reason that its susceptibilities are limited to the plane of the senses. It lives under the bondage of nature and nature’s laws.

Abdu'l-Baha, Promulgation of Universal Peace

On the other hand, some animals are amazingly superior to humans with their sensory and memory performance:

If we were to claim that all these effects proceed from the powers of the animal nature and the physical senses, then we see plainly and clearly that, with regard to these powers, the animals are superior to man. For example, the sight of animals is much keener than that of man, their hearing is more acute, and likewise with their powers of smell and taste. Briefly, in the powers which man and animal share in common, the animal often has the advantage. Take the power of memory: If you carry a pigeon from here to a faraway country, and there set it free, it will remember the way and return home. Take a dog from here to the heart of Asia, set it free, and it will return home without ever losing its way. And so is it with the other powers, such as hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch. It is clear then that if man did not possess a power beyond the animal powers, the animal would perforce surpass man in significant discoveries and in the comprehension of realities. It follows from this argument that man is endowed with a gift, and possesses a perfection, which is not present in the animal.

Abdu'l Baha, Answered Questions

Already in the world of animal organisms, nature has created incredible masterpieces in the smallest spaces with minimal energy expenditure, whose research will surely yield many insights regarding sensors, motor skills, and signal processing. Perhaps we will someday be able to construct artificial neural networks with organic materials to achieve even greater progress than with current silicon-based chips? Deeper research in this area will certainly deliver many exciting breakthroughs, quite independent of any connection with human consciousness.

Conclusion

This perspective on the foundations of intelligence, reason, and consciousness provides me personally with some relief! The creation of a conscious, creatively thinking, and overpowering being that could essentially consume us in the form of a technological singularity is thus fundamentally out of reach. Nevertheless, it would be reckless to underestimate the capabilities of artificial intelligence. Even without possessing consciousness or true creative abilities, AI systems can fulfill a multitude of tasks for humanity's benefit or harm through their extensive training. As with all great inventions, the decision about sensible and responsible application of artificial intelligence lies with humans themselves.

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Markus Mediger lives in Nuremberg, studied physics at RWTH Aachen and is professionally active in the technology sector.

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