François Chollet: 'AI is computation so it may be conscious' is as empty as 'rocks are atoms so they're alive'
fchollet · x · 2026-10-04
Keras creator François Chollet pushed back on the popular argument that AI models are computation and therefore likely conscious, calling it as meaningless as claiming a rock might be alive because both rocks and living things are made of atoms.
- Everything is computation—chess engines, AlphaGo, the Linux kernel—but sophistication alone doesn't confer consciousness
- Current AI is static input-output programs lacking the properties associated with conscious beings: information integration, interoception, temporal binding, embodiment
- He argues humanity hasn't created a conscious program and shows no signs of being close; a real case for machine consciousness will rest on evidence from consciousness science, not wishful thinking
Related event: Chollet Rejects Claims That Current AI Models Are Conscious(4 posts)→
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