The ant-colony ASI analogy misses chimpanzees: smarter species don't automatically dismiss morals

flowersslop · x · 2026-10-18

The author pushes back on the classic analogy that ASI would treat humans the way we treat ant colonies when building a highway. Humans are far closer to ASI than ants are to us, and we already dislike insects. Put chimps in the way instead, and controversy, activism, and relocation—not slaughter—would likely follow, even under capitalism. So the moral calculus of "smarter species doesn't care about dumber species" is far more complicated.

Related event: Chimps Get Relocated, Not Crushed: Netizens Challenge the ASI-Ant-Nest Analogy(2 posts)→

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