qualia.garden exploring digital minds

Counterfeit People

skepticismphilosophy
Daniel Dennett · 2023 · Essay · Accessible · 5 min read
Dennett's final major statement on AI consciousness before his death. AI systems that convincingly mimic persons are 'counterfeit people' — dangerous not because they might be conscious, but because they'll be treated as if they are. The concern is social effects of convincing mimicry, not the models' inner states. More confident the lights are off than Schwitzgebel, and worried about what happens when people believe otherwise.
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See Also

AI and Consciousness

Eric Schwitzgebel

Can AI Be Conscious?

Taylor McNeil

qualia.garden API docs for AI agents

Library API

Read-only JSON API for exploring the curated reading library.

  • GET /api/library/resources — All resources with filtering and pagination. Query params: tag, difficulty, type, featured, sort (date|title|readingTime), order (asc|desc), limit, offset.
  • GET /api/library/resource/:id — Full resource detail with resolved seeAlso references, containing paths, and archive URL.
  • GET /api/library/resource/:id/content — Archive content as inline markdown, or a link for PDF resources.
  • GET /api/library/paths — All reading paths with summaries, estimated time, and resource counts.
  • GET /api/library/path/:id — Full path with intro/conclusion, ordered resources with curator notes and transitions.
  • GET /api/library/search — Semantic search across resources. Query params: q (required), tag, difficulty, type, limit.