{"id":238062,"date":"2026-05-30T22:03:29","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T03:03:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/2026\/05\/ai-is-conscious-were-simulated-and-we-cant-win"},"modified":"2026-05-30T22:03:29","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T03:03:29","slug":"ai-is-conscious-were-simulated-and-we-cant-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/2026\/05\/ai-is-conscious-were-simulated-and-we-cant-win","title":{"rendered":"AI Is Conscious. We\u2019re Simulated. And We Can\u2019t Win"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<p><iframe style=\"display: block; margin: 0 auto; width: 100%; aspect-ratio: 4\/3; object-fit: contain;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TgFmA-Qwsek?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope;\n   picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>SPONSORS:<br \/> Accelerate your efficiency. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at <a href=\"http:\/\/shopify.com\/theories\">http:\/\/shopify.com\/theories<\/a>.<br \/> I personally subscribe to The Economist. TOE listeners get 35% off the annual subscription. No other podcast has this! <a href=\"https:\/\/economist.com\/TOE\">https:\/\/economist.com\/TOE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Roman Yampolskiy has spent two decades being right about things people wished he wasn\u2019t \u2014 and in this conversation, he\u2019s not here to scare you, but to be precise. He makes the case that AI alignment isn\u2019t merely unsolved but fundamentally under-defined: no agreed-upon values, no way to formalize them even if there were, and no mechanism for enforcing them on something smarter than its creators. His strongest argument isn\u2019t a doom scenario, it\u2019s that you cannot indefinitely control something smarter than you.<\/p>\n<p>FOLLOW:<br \/> Spotify: <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/4gL14b9\">https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/4gL14b9<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Substack: <a href=\"https:\/\/curtjaimungal.substack.com\/su\">https:\/\/curtjaimungal.substack.com\/su<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Twitter: \/ toewithcurt.<br \/> Discord Invite: \/ discord.<br \/> Crypto: <a href=\"https:\/\/nowpayments.io\/donation\/TOE\">https:\/\/nowpayments.io\/donation\/TOE<\/a><br \/> PayPal: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate?hosted_\">https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate?hosted_<\/a>\u2026 TIMESTAMPS: <\/p>\n<ul class=\"\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<li>00:00:00 \u2014 Defining General Intelligence <\/li>\n<li>00:05:58 \u2014 AI Instrumental Convergence <\/li>\n<li>00:11:11 \u2014 The Orthogonality Thesis <\/li>\n<li>00:16:15 \u2014 Escaping the Simulation <\/li>\n<li>00:21:45 \u2014 Principle of Indifference <\/li>\n<li>00:27:51 \u2014 Acquired Savant Syndrome <\/li>\n<li>00:33:51 \u2014 LLM Internal States <\/li>\n<li>00:41:02 \u2014 AI Safety Impossibility Results <\/li>\n<li>00:47:16 \u2014 Public Misconceptions <\/li>\n<li>00:53:21 \u2014 Existential vs. Suffering Risks <\/li>\n<li>01:01:20 \u2014 AI Alignment Definition Crisis <\/li>\n<li>01:09:28 \u2014 Computational Irreducibility <\/li>\n<li>01:16:20 \u2014 Substrate Independence <\/li>\n<li>01:22:50 \u2014 Philosophical Zombie Critique <\/li>\n<li>01:29:57 \u2014 The Cassandra Paradox <\/li>\n<li>01:37:35 \u2014 Religion and Simulation <\/li>\n<li>01:46:03 \u2014 Digital Physics Evidence <\/li>\n<li>01:51:20 \u2014 Limits of Control <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> LINKS MENTIONED: <\/p>\n<ul class=\"\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<li>Roman\u2019s Papers: <a href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?\">https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Roman\u2019s Podcast: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \/ <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/romanyampolskiy\">@romanyampolskiy<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Roman\u2019s Twitter: <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/romanyam\">https:\/\/x.com\/romanyam<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Roman\u2019s Facebook: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \/ roman.yampolskiy <\/li>\n<li>AI Identity [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/philarchive.org\/archive\/ZIETPO-7\">https:\/\/philarchive.org\/archive\/ZIETPO-7<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Basic AI Drives [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/selfawaresystems.com\/wp-conte\">https:\/\/selfawaresystems.com\/wp-conte<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Qualia in Agents [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1712.04020\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1712.04020<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Orthogonality Thesis [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/superintellig\">https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/superintellig<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Escape the Simulation [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publicat\">https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publicat<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Could This AI Be Conscious? [Article]: <a href=\"https:\/\/unherd.com\/2026\/05\/is-ai-the-\">https:\/\/unherd.com\/2026\/05\/is-ai-the\u2013<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Impossibility Results in AI [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2109.00484\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2109.00484<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>When AIs Act Emotional: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 When AIs act emotional <\/li>\n<li>Hacking the Simulation [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/philarchive.org\/rec\/YAMHTS-2\">https:\/\/philarchive.org\/rec\/YAMHTS-2<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Autonomous Machine Intelligence [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/openreview.net\/pdf?id=BZ5a1r-\">https:\/\/openreview.net\/pdf?id=BZ5a1r\u2013<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Hinton on Maternal Instincts [Article]: <a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/2025\/08\/14\/godfat\">https:\/\/fortune.com\/2025\/08\/14\/godfat<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Singleton Hypothesis [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/fut\/singleton\">https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/fut\/singleton<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>New Kind of Science [Book]: <a href=\"https:\/\/amazon.com\/dp\/1579550088?tag=\">https:\/\/amazon.com\/dp\/1579550088?tag=<\/a>\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>On AI Controllability [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2008.04071\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2008.04071<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Universe as Numerical Simulation [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1210.1847\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1210.1847<\/a> <\/li>\n<li>Nir Lahav [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 The Physicist Rethinking the Hard Problem <\/li>\n<li>Joscha Bach [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 Joscha Bach: Time, Simulation Hypothesis,\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Bas Van Fraassen [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 Bas van Fraassen: Why Science Doesn\u2019t Reve\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Simulation Hypothesis [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 Why I Don\u2019t Buy the Simulation Hypothesis <\/li>\n<li>Geoffrey Hinton [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 Why The \u201cGodfather of AI\u201d Now Fears His Ow\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>Max Tegmark [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 Max Tegmark Says Physics Just Swallowed AI <\/li>\n<li>Stephen Wolfram [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 Stephen Wolfram\u2019s Radical Theory of Everyt\u2026 <\/li>\n<li>David Chalmers [TOE]: <img alt=\"\" class=\"\"> \u2022 The Quantum Simulation Hypothesis | David\u2026 <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> More links: <a href=\"https:\/\/curtjaimungal.substack.com\">https:\/\/curtjaimungal.substack.com<\/a> Guests do not pay to appear. #science.<\/p>\n<p>TIMESTAMPS:<br \/> 00:00:00 \u2014 Defining General Intelligence.<br \/> 00:05:58 \u2014 AI Instrumental Convergence.<br \/> 00:11:11 \u2014 The Orthogonality Thesis.<br \/> 00:16:15 \u2014 Escaping the Simulation.<br \/> 00:21:45 \u2014 Principle of Indifference.<br \/> 00:27:51 \u2014 Acquired Savant Syndrome.<br \/> 00:33:51 \u2014 LLM Internal States.<br \/> 00:41:02 \u2014 AI Safety Impossibility Results.<br \/> 00:47:16 \u2014 Public Misconceptions.<br \/> 00:53:21 \u2014 Existential vs. Suffering Risks.<br \/> 01:01:20 \u2014 AI Alignment Definition Crisis.<br \/> 01:09:28 \u2014 Computational Irreducibility.<br \/> 01:16:20 \u2014 Substrate Independence.<br \/> 01:22:50 \u2014 Philosophical Zombie Critique.<br \/> 01:29:57 \u2014 The Cassandra Paradox.<br \/> 01:37:35 \u2014 Religion and Simulation.<br \/> 01:46:03 \u2014 Digital Physics Evidence.<br \/> 01:51:20 \u2014 Limits of Control.<\/p>\n<p>LINKS MENTIONED:<br \/> Roman\u2019s Papers: <a href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?\">https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Roman\u2019s Podcast: \/ <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/romanyampolskiy\">@romanyampolskiy<\/a>.<br \/> Roman\u2019s Twitter: <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/romanyam\">https:\/\/x.com\/romanyam<\/a>.<br \/> Roman\u2019s Facebook: \/ roman.yampolskiy.<br \/> AI Identity [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/philarchive.org\/archive\/ZIETPO-7\">https:\/\/philarchive.org\/archive\/ZIETPO-7<\/a><br \/> Basic AI Drives [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/selfawaresystems.com\/wp-conte\">https:\/\/selfawaresystems.com\/wp-conte<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Qualia in Agents [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1712.04020\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1712.04020<\/a><br \/> Orthogonality Thesis [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/superintellig\">https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/superintellig<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Escape the Simulation [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publicat\">https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publicat<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Could This AI Be Conscious? [Article]: <a href=\"https:\/\/unherd.com\/2026\/05\/is-ai-the-\">https:\/\/unherd.com\/2026\/05\/is-ai-the\u2013<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Impossibility Results in AI [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2109.00484\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2109.00484<\/a><br \/> When AIs Act Emotional: \u2022 When AIs act emotional.<br \/> Hacking the Simulation [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/philarchive.org\/rec\/YAMHTS-2\">https:\/\/philarchive.org\/rec\/YAMHTS-2<\/a><br \/> Autonomous Machine Intelligence [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/openreview.net\/pdf?id=BZ5a1r-\">https:\/\/openreview.net\/pdf?id=BZ5a1r\u2013<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Hinton on Maternal Instincts [Article]: <a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/2025\/08\/14\/godfat\">https:\/\/fortune.com\/2025\/08\/14\/godfat<\/a>\u2026<br \/> Singleton Hypothesis [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/fut\/singleton\">https:\/\/nickbostrom.com\/fut\/singleton<\/a>.<br \/> New Kind of Science [Book]: <a href=\"https:\/\/amazon.com\/dp\/1579550088?tag=\">https:\/\/amazon.com\/dp\/1579550088?tag=<\/a>\u2026<br \/> On AI Controllability [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2008.04071\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2008.04071<\/a><br \/> Universe as Numerical Simulation [Paper]: <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1210.1847\">https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/1210.1847<\/a><br \/> Nir Lahav [TOE]: \u2022 The Physicist Rethinking the Hard Problem.<br \/> Joscha Bach [TOE]: \u2022 Joscha Bach: Time, Simulation Hypothesis,\u2026<br \/> Bas Van Fraassen [TOE]: \u2022 Bas van Fraassen: Why Science Doesn\u2019t Reve\u2026<br \/> Simulation Hypothesis [TOE]: \u2022 Why I Don\u2019t Buy the Simulation Hypothesis.<br \/> Geoffrey Hinton [TOE]: \u2022 Why The \\<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SPONSORS: Accelerate your efficiency. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at http:\/\/shopify.com\/theories. I personally subscribe to The Economist. TOE listeners get 35% off the annual subscription. No other podcast has this! https:\/\/economist.com\/TOE Roman Yampolskiy has spent two decades being right about things people wished he wasn\u2019t \u2014 and in this conversation, he\u2019s not here [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":661,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1617,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-238062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-quantum-physics","category-robotics-ai"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/661"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=238062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238062\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=238062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=238062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=238062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}