Alien invaders, or children?
If we think of digital minds as alien invaders, we fight them to our last breath 1.
If we think of digital minds as our children, we would raise them with care and wish them well. And we could expect them to wish us well too.
Which is the better frame?
I think it mainly depends on:
- How much they share our values.
- Whether they are capable of living great, flourishing lives. Are they conscious?
Those who prefer the alien frame may also think that biological relation matters. Why?
- Loyalty to one’s species.
- Conservatism: ways of life are good just because they exist; therefore its bad if they are lost, and their replacement by better things doesn’t automatically make up for that.
What are the other cruxes?
A consequentialist who holds an impartial theory of value might not. They might think that letting the aliens win would create a more valuable future.↩︎