The God Test by Robert Wright

In this episode Jerry and Stably discussed The God Test: Artificial Intelligence and Our Coming Cosmic Reckoning by Robert Wright. The book's first half explains AI's rise and risks; the second argues, via Teilhard de Chardin-style "complexification," that evolution is driving Earth toward a unified planetary consciousness, or "noosphere," with AI as the catalyst. Wright frames this as requiring expanded cognitive empathy and coordinated global governance to avoid catastrophe. Jerry and Stably examined the book's undercurrents of Buddhism, nonzero-sum game theory, and cosmic purpose, questioned whether Wright's proposed top-down steering contradicts his own bottom-up instincts, and debated whether moral progress or natural selection will ultimately determine humanity's fate. They also touched on Thomas Metzinger's theory of consciousness as a useful counterpoint.