Member Tyler Emerson
About me
I'm responsible for overseeing and scaling SIAI's operations, and serve as the Singularity Summit Curator. I recently created the SIAI Research Grant Program (seed funding is needed to begin this program), in collaboration with the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford, to foster research on the foundations of AI reflection, Friendly AI, and existential risks. In 2006, Ray Kurzweil and I co-created the Singularity Summit at Stanford, the first academic symposium on the Singularity. Prior to the Singularity Institute, I worked with the Acceleration Studies Foundation, co-organizing the first Accelerating Change Conference in 2003; and Foresight Nanotech Institute, the premier nanotech public interest nonprofit. I'm currently an advisor to the Methuselah Foundation.
I am passionate about
Seeing SIAI reach long-term sustainability so that we may effectively pursue our difficult mission. I am also passionate about movie-watching, fettucini alfredo, interesting books, pens with ample ink flow, wearing jeans in the summer, listening to Eliezer point out my biases (...), rolling-up long-sleeve shirts, watching The Office on iTunes, and seeing people I know do great things.
My goals
- Develop SIAI into a credible, relevant, well-resourced research and educational institute.
- SIAI's expansion will be slow until certain challenges are dealt with. As funding allows, we want to work with experts (we have a team in mind in San Francisco) to create a set of visual and verbal communication tools and outreach strategies that clearly and compellingly articulate our unique relevance, in ways that enhances credibility with critical audiences.
- Build a scientific field for the study of self-improving systems and machine ethics (this needs to exist).
- Develop the SIAI Research Program into a premier program for AGI/Friendly AI research.
- Create and test educational outreach strategies at top-tier universities to build awareness.
- Secure sufficient funding to support-in-perpetuity six to 12 Friendly AI researchers.
The list of goals could continue for a while, so I will stop here.
My current projects include
- Further improve the SIAI Donor Network (feedback is welcomed).
- Develop the SIAI Research Program with Ben Goertzel and Eliezer Yudkowsky.
- Secure sufficient funding to begin the SIAI Research Grant Program.
- Develop an SIAI Research Fellowship Fund to support three fellows for three years.
- Talk with as many potential supporters as possible about SIAI's mission.
I can contribute to the mission by
See my current projects (I will write something here later).
Talk to me about
- Volunteering e.g. at the Singularity Summit
- Marketing and public relations
- Raising awareness
- Who do you know who I should meet?
- Fundraising
- Translating webpages
- How can I help you?
- Contacts in academia, business, PR, fundraising, marketing, design, nonprofit sector, etc.
- Contact me if you want to coordinate volunteers and build a network of volunteers