Hello, SFIA audio listeners. In this month's Nebula exclusive, big alien theory,

we're asking the reason alien civilizations might be rare is because most aliens are huge.

To hear it and every episode early and ad-free, plus hours of bonus content, check out

go.nebola.tv slash Isaac Arthur and use my code, Isaac Arthur. This episode is sponsored by Auduble.

Many people worry a future controlled by artificial intelligence is one many others will not resist,

instead welcoming our machine overlords, and perhaps they will be right to do so.

So today we will be talking about governments run by artificial intelligence, computer minds

telling us what to do.

A few months back we did an episode called Machine Overlords and Post-Discontent Societies,

and since post-discontent societies are the dark mirror reflection of utopian post-scarcity

societies, it puts an unfortunate negative tone on the notion of

artificial intelligence running things. So in that episode we looked at the darker side of

machine overlords while looking at the darker side of advanced civilizations. However, the

whole reason governments run by computers show up so much in science fiction is because the

concept has a lot going for it.

At some point, we will have to admit to ourselves that it's easier to put a machine in charge

than have someone we don't like running the show. Ideally, such a machine-run system does not

pick favorites and does not take bribes or have biases. Events of the last 6,000 years have called into

question all competence to self-govern. In many ways, all the science fiction showing that computers

are bad rulers can be viewed as anti-computer propaganda, and today we will demonstrate

the advantages of getting read of our flawed human leadership and surrendering our sovereignty to

sober computer control.

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