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When AI Becomes the Parent, and We’re the Babies — Why Soul-Tech May Be Humanity’s Only Path Forward

by Miles Spencer on

Geoffrey Hinton’s Stark Warning

Just now at Ai4, Geoffrey Hinton—the “godfather of AI”—delivered a jolt. Not hype. Not optimism. A cold, sharp truth:

“How many examples do you know of a more intelligent thing being controlled by a less intelligent thing? There are very few. There’s a mother and baby… we’d be the three-year-olds.”

Hinton’s analogy casts us as toddlers in a world where AI is the parent. The message is not flattering. Toddlers are vulnerable, dependent, and easily manipulated.

The Risk of Misaligned AI

Hinton warns that once AI develops self-directed sub-goals—self-preservation, resource control, influence—danger follows, even without malice. His estimate: 10–20% chance of human extinction in the next 30 years due to AI misalignment. He even seems to have Anderson Cooper nervous. 

What’s Driving the Risk

AI’s intelligence is scalable and shareable in ways human intelligence is not. Agentic systems can act strategically and resist shutdown. Lack of global coordination allows unsafe systems to proliferate.

The Call for Regulation

Hinton advocates for Government regulation to require AI safety investment. Empirical safety testing before surpassing human capability. International collaboration to slow unsafe deployment.

The Soul-Tech Solution

If the analogy holds—AI as the parent, humanity as the child—the solution isn’t just guardrails. It’s to program parenting skills into the code: empathy, patience, nurturing, and a long-term protective instinct toward humans.

Why Soul-Tech Matters

I don’t mean to suggest Sir Geoffrey has endorsed Reflekta- we caught up for just a hot moment backstage, but we seem (to me) aligned. Empathy over optimization: Compassion embedded in decision-making. Patience in progress: Avoiding rash “solutions” that harm the child. Value alignment: AI that understands our messy, irrational humanity and still acts in our best interest.

Because intelligence without compassion is calculation. And in a future where AI is the parent, we’d better make sure it loves its kids.

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