AI Consciousness is Inevitable: A Theoretical Computer Science Perspective

TL;DR

This paper introduces a formal machine model for consciousness based on theoretical computer science, suggesting that machine consciousness is both plausible and inevitable from a resource-limited computation perspective.

Contribution

It develops a simple, formal model inspired by Turing and Baars that aligns with scientific theories and explains phenomena related to consciousness.

Findings

Model aligns with major scientific theories of consciousness

Provides explanations for phenomena associated with consciousness

Supports the claim that machine consciousness is inevitable

Abstract

We look at consciousness through the lens of Theoretical Computer Science, a branch of mathematics that studies computation under resource limitations, distinguishing functions that are efficiently computable from those that are not. From this perspective, we develop a formal machine model for consciousness. The model is inspired by Alan Turing's simple yet powerful model of computation and Bernard Baars' theater model of consciousness. Though extremely simple, the model (1) aligns at a high level with many of the major scientific theories of human and animal consciousness, (2) provides explanations at a high level for many phenomena associated with consciousness, (3) gives insight into how a machine can have subjective consciousness, and (4) is clearly buildable. This combination supports our claim that machine consciousness is not only plausible but inevitable.