Consciousness in non-biological substrates: possibilities and limitations of contemporary cognitive research
Психология и Психотехника April 1, 2025 Aleksandr Grigorev
Consciousness in artificial systems may require spatiotemporal complexity, embodied sensorimotor coupling, and multiscale modeling, but no current AI meets these conditions. The article examines philosophical and scientific preconditions for non-biological consciousness, critiquing the Turing Test and legal definitions of AI. It discusses functionalism, modularity, and connectionism, and reviews large-scale brain projects (Blue Brain, Human Brain Project, BRAIN Initiative) and neuromorphic platforms (SpiNNaker, BrainScaleS). A thought experiment involving a neuromorphic implant (EnTwin) that creates a digital twin raises questions of self-identity and copy multiplicity. The authors propose necessary conditions for artificial consciousness: thresholds of complexity (PCI, FDI), embodied sensorimotor coupling, and multiscale modeling, arguing that empirical testing of consciousness hypotheses is approaching through neuroengineering and computational neurobiology.