#1. How far AI will go ?
Unleashing endless possibilities, 3 May
Dear Readers,
I am very glad and excited to launch Singularity, my newsletter dedicated to artificial intelligence. I will try in this first paper to explain the reason why I choose to do it, some personal insights and what are my ambitions.
During the last 3 years, I spent a lot of time to write about how technological changes can transform the global economy and economic sectors, in my French newsletter called
or Open Letters. I’ve developed a network in France, learnt a lot on many topics - Web3, crypto, blockchain, Spatial Computing, and, of course, AI - and I am pretty proud of itTerra incognita – tectonic shift
But the last 18 months changed everything in my journey and imposed myself to move forward. The rise of generative artificial intelligence in the wake of the launch of ChatGPT opens a “terra incognita” of new, possibly endless opportunities, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse if we are not sufficiently prepared.
I am convinced that we are now experiencing one of the most important change in the human condition, with a technology that could have so many wide-ranging consequences in our day-to-day life. In another word, AI could be a tectonic shift. So, I consider to be the time for me to dedicate all my energy to this unique topic. I think about it for some months and my loved ones put some pressure on me to act.
A second reason for launching Singularity is more personal. As a French national, I also really want to start writing in English. I am very comfortable to write in my native language – I wrote more than 400 articles in French until now in the space of 12 years as I started my career in Le Figaro, a notorious newspaper, located in Boulevard Haussmann – but it is not the same story in English and today it is the first one. So, forgive me if some errors, grammatical mistakes, arise. I will improve over time.
AI is already changing the world
In Singularity, I will cover thematic related to AI, with an overarching question in mind: how AI will change the world and how far? Some people are still doubtful about the “if” AI can change the world. Not me. In my mind, things are clear: AI is already changing our world and for some years already. In the future, changes will probably accelerate and cause more and more disruption. Through rhythm is still unclear.
To be totally honest with my readers, I am probably not completely figuring out all the possibilities of this incredible technology. Some experts have clearly this knowledge, not me. I learned a lot during the last 3 years writing so many articles and also in my career in the Banque de France, and I will continue to learn with you. I think I developed a good knowledge, but I don’t pretend to know everything.
Inevitability
But I am sure of one thing: AI is inevitable and could at one point in time to really confront human intelligence, with difficulties to anticipate the precise outcomes. This unpredictable / uncertainty future of AI explains also why so many people, especially in the developed world and in France (we are very worried in general) seem to be so anxious with his rise. To sum up: the more AI is developing, the more anxiety.
Another factor of anxiety is a lack of knowledge. That is why I want to create this newsletter to explain more clearly the consequences of AI, an exponential technology. I want to be part of this new emerging world and help people to navigate better in this terra incognita, and maybe, in a second time, to propose some advice in some specific area where I have more background.
Endless possibilities. Everywhere
Another important point: I choose the name Singularity for my English newsletter because it resonates a lot when we speak about. This term has several meanings depending on the context and the field, in mathematics and physics above all. There is a sense of infinite future. In technology and futurism, technological singularity refers to a hypothetical moment in the future where AI surpasses human intelligence, leading to unpredictable changes in society.
As a banking supervisor in ACPR - Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution -, the national authority for controlling banks located right in center of Paris in coordination with the ECB in Frankfurt, I have already observed many times that AI is a new and top priority, both for supervisors and for banks (see the Infograph below). Clearly, I can share with you many insights on how the banking and financial sector is and will be totally reshaped by this technology.
Be AI-ready.
But Singularity will not be limited to it to the perimeter of banks. Singularity has one clear and broader focus: be ready to AI. This mantra applies on three levels : 1/ companies. For instance, Meta, Tesla, Alphabet and Microsoft are now shifting their existing business models by investing in AI. But I am convinced that totally new kind of startups will emerge in the future. An interesting debate emerged with OpenAI at the end of last year and Sam won. 2/ society be will disrupted in the same time and 3/ citizens too. With my newsletter, I want to anticipate the future for the better.
In parallel, I am looking to reach a different and broader audience and new authors in the United States and elsewhere. I read a lot of excellent newsletters like
, , , and , and I would like to create some bridge between our different approaches and cultures, share information / ideas and speak about projects and books. For instance, I saw yesterday that Nick Bostrom published Deep Utopia, with AI that will, for him, eventually create an era of abundance without conflict.In this way, AI has clearly an international component. The danger is to work behind closed doors, in a black box, in each country, with the risk of a brain-drain.
I hope that you will enjoy Singularity, see you soon and happy to respond to your remarks or questions.
Let’s spread the word now :
Amaury