Part 13/16:
A key concern is whether future AI systems can or should experience suffering. If they do, creating them could pose moral dilemmas. Conversely, if they cannot suffer, then ethical issues might diminish.
He references a Star Trek episode where Data creates a child android, raising questions about self-awareness, rights, and moral standing. The core takeaway: appearance and behavior alone do not guarantee subjective experience.
Shapiro cautions us not to project human experiences onto machines, as this risks misjudging their moral status. If a machine only imitates pain convincingly, it might not truly feel it.