Now is the Age of Culture (文話) Humanity's Golden Time in Facing Uncontrollable Technology
A catastrophic warning about uncontrollable technology from Anthropic researchers has emerged. According to foreign media outlets including the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Jacob Cockson, an AI training researcher at Anthropic, submitted his resignation along with a warning that "the most extreme scenario is likely to become reality" and "if things continue as they are, the situation could spiral out of control by the end of next year."
He clearly drew the line, stating that he did not want to participate in the development of "Self-Improvement" AI, which enhances its own performance without human intervention. This incident, in which fellow key researchers even mentioned extinction probabilities and sided with him, cannot be viewed lightly as merely one researcher's warning. We must accept it as a major civilizational crisis alert that we face.
The credibility of this warning is proven by recent technological achievements in the field. A prime example is when OpenAI deployed 10,000 AI agents and derived a solution to the "Navier-Stokes Equation," one of the world's seven greatest mathematical challenges, in just 88 hours. This achievement of breaking through a problem that had plagued human mathematicians for 90 years starkly reveals the two-sidedness of the inflection point that AI technology has reached.
The overwhelming reasoning ability that solved the mathematical puzzle in one stroke and the AI's capability to independently formulate hypotheses are certainly an opportunity for human advancement. Beyond fluid dynamics analysis, we now have powerful means to solve humanity's long-standing challenges such as designing treatments for intractable diseases, discovering new materials to overcome climate change, and resolving labor shortages in a super-aged society. The productivity revolution that AI will bring has the potential to fundamentally transform society's overall welfare and quality of life.
The problem is that social consensus and institutions have not kept pace with the runaway speed of technology at all. As evidenced by the controversy over prior research learning that erupted following the announcement of the Navier-Stokes solution, big tech companies are caught in a prisoner's dilemma, thinking "if I stop, competitors or rival nations will seize the initiative," and are engrossed in a speed race. In reality, research on "Alignment," which adapts technology to human values, and autonomous AI control studies are often pushed to the back burner. This is why warnings that technology could transform from being a tool to assist humans into an uncontrollable subject are gaining weight.
We must establish new philosophical landmarks in how we approach technology. First, a shift from "the technology of speed" to "the technology of direction." Rather than being consumed by technological acceleration, ethical reconnaissance functions that reflect on whether such technology undermines human dignity must operate first.
Second, a recovery of agency in technological sovereignty. AI has value only when it serves as an "instrumental means" to expand human life. We must be vigilant about the moment when technology itself becomes the goal, and humanity must remain the subject that ultimately controls it.
Third, a sense of civilizational responsibility toward solidarity and coexistence. We must establish global ethical standards that prioritize the survival and well-being of all humanity by breaking free from the fear of competition.
"Technology under control becomes a lamp that illuminates the darkness, but technology that loses control becomes a wildfire that burns down entire civilization." The ten-year timeframe may be humanity's last golden time. As AI evolves into the realm of superintelligence, the essence we must preserve at all costs is not the computational power of technology, but humanity's unique capacity for ethical reflection and social responsibility.