Introduction

Almost every headline today is about how artificial intelligence (AI) is going to ruin the world. It will take all our jobs and leave us all in the dust as soon as Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) comes along. This narrative bothers me immensely. It bothered me enough to start writing this book. Make no mistake, AGI is indeed coming, and it will never be the same again once it gets here. But the same could be said for the writing press, the Internet, or every other major historical invention. Anyone who claims to know when or how our world will change instantly is lying to themselves and to everyone else. The doomsday narrative currently dominating the headlines helps nobody except those selling newspapers.