The first artificial intelligence was booted up around 4000BC in southern Iraq. It seems to have begun as something like a bank, a temple pooling grain against famine. As that AI evolved, it formed the world's first city around itself: Uruk. Over the next thousand years it became a religion, landlord, insurance company, employer, slaveholder, infrastructure-builder and the most powerful military force on the planet.

An artificial intelligence is an entity that is not itself a biological organism, yet whose behavior can only be predicted by treating it as an agent: something that devises and executes complicated plans. Note that this is a test of observed behavior, not internals. As of 2026, the dominant AIs on Earth are markets, corporations and governments. These entities perform their computations on hardware made of humans, paper and electronics, and their capabilities are jagged: superhuman in some directions, incompetent in others. The American government developed the atomic bomb in three years under total secrecy, coordinating >100 thousand workers, most of whom did not know what they were building. That same country spent a century failing to finish the 2nd ave subway line. When it finally opened, it cost >2 billion dollars per mile [...]

The original text contained 6 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.

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First published:
August 21st, 2026

Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/mPrbyBsGmNfWWgJmi/misaligned-ai-in-the-bronze-age

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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.

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Images from the article:

Stone relief showing figures farming beneath an eye symbol.

Giant octopus over Earth, text about AI and economy.

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“Misaligned AI in the Bronze Age” by frmsaul

LessWrong (30+ Karma)

“Misaligned AI in the Bronze Age” by frmsaul