When the Intelligence goes out
Thinking about the AI industry’s promise of intelligence that flows like electricity — a metaphor that carries the implications both of ubiquity and central generation — I wonder what happens, in the future, when the intelligence goes out?
The idea of switching to local backup “generators” (AI models) is the appealing sci-fi scenario: a storm rages through town and, for the next two days, your devices still work … they’re just dumber.
But, the way things are going, I’m not sure that’s really plausible. I can’t think of an example, in the last decade or so, of compute and capability moving closer to the user, rather than farther away. In the data center, engineers have devised powerful, resilient systems … so your phone and laptop (and refrigerator?) run great as long as they can connect. A supercomputer in your pocket, a supersupercomputer on the banks of the Columbia River, and, tying them together: a thread.
Doesn’t seem ideal to me, but I guess we’ll see!
Robin Sloan