Engineering Generosity

The chief challenge, as Lee sees it, is how to make AI smarter without just throwing more data and computing power at it. His hope rests on the iterative tweaking of algorithms that improve the performance of AI at a “geometric pace.”

That means there are three main components to identify when looking at a system: the people, the interaction (i.e. the sharing of information), and the shared context (i.e. what that group of people have in common).

Kindness has unlimited upside.”

Perhaps the most counterintuitive truth of the universe is that the more you give to others, the more you’ll get. Understanding this is the beginning of wisdom.

the era of business poetry begins today.

Reciprocity is not merely generosity; giving away a surplus is an investment, insurance that others will help in your own time of need

scarce systems do what is most likely to succeed right now, because tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. Abundant systems assume that tomorrow will be there, so it’s ok to focus on longer term goals.

Generous people view their possessions as temporary; they are joining in a bigger story. Generous people are always looking toward the needs of others by using what they have been given. Things don’t matter; people do. They open their house to others. They open their pool for parties. They let people borrow their cars. They freely give, with no

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While computing power grows in exponential leaps, the pace of transition to a green economy that would cleanly fuel that growth lags far behind.