LESSONS FROM THE QUEST FOR ARTIFICIAL CONSCIOUSNESS: THE EMERGENCE CRITERION, INSIGHT‐ORIENTED AI, AND IMAGO DEI
Zygon December 3, 2025
Current research on strong AI and conscious machines has not yet succeeded, but several lessons can be drawn. Functionalist approaches to consciousness fail to account for the importance of subjective experience and can be misled by how algorithms work and succeed. Authenticity and emergence help distinguish valid from invalid approaches and clarify cases like Sophia or LaMDA where algorithms are considered conscious. Subjectivity and embeddedness are key notions that should lead to re-examining the ethics of decision delegation. Focusing on subjective experience shifts understanding of being human and the image of God, de-emphasizing intellectuality in favor of experience and contemplation over action.