Conduit's mindreading push sparks fears of authoritarian abuse
Telepathy tech promises trust but could empower tyrants, warns viral essay.
Conduit, a company building datasets to enable telepathy, is at the center of a heated debate. A viral essay argues that while mindreading could offer benefits like verified honesty, trust, and even AI safety, it poses grave risks. The author cites DARPA's exploration of 'preconscious' thoughts for suicide prevention as a positive use case, and acknowledges the personal appeal of helping those with motor control loss. However, the potential for abuse is enormous.
Historical and modern examples illustrate the danger. Oskar Schindler saved lives by lying to Nazis—mindreading would make such resistance impossible. IBM's policing software aided the Xinjiang genocide, showing how American tech gets repurposed by autocrats. The FBI's predictive AI and White House rhetoric about 'domestic extremists' suggest domestic risks too. The essay concludes that some technologies are credibly broadly good, but mindreading is not one of them. It urges caution before Conduit's vision becomes reality.
- Conduit is developing datasets for telepathy, with potential uses in AI safety and suicide prevention.
- DARPA is researching 'preconscious' thoughts, while IBM's Xinjiang software shows how tech enables authoritarianism.
- The essay argues mindreading would eliminate the ability to lie to oppressive regimes, citing Schindler's example.
Why It Matters
Mindreading tech could erode privacy and enable totalitarian control, making this a critical ethical debate for society.