Yudkowsky's 'Circular Altruism' passage resurfaces amid current AI discourse
NathanpmYoung · x · 2026-11-10
A passage from Yudkowsky's 'Circular Altruism' is being shared as relevant to current AI discourse: would you save 400 lives with certainty, or 500 lives with 90% probability? Yudkowsky argues that if your own daughter were among the 500 (identity unknown), you'd 'shut up and multiply' — an 80% vs 90% chance of saving her — and since everyone in the crowd is someone's child, altruists should pick the second option too. His point: people only resort to math when more than their own life is at stake.
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