5 ms·

"the demand for philosophers with A.I. training is, if anything, outstripping the supply right now. It’s an area I encourage students to go into"... There's ab

by jipl104 2mo ago

"the demand for philosophers with A.I. training is, if anything, outstripping the supply right now. It’s an area I encourage students to go into"... There's about 20 philosophers employed by AI labs worldwide, vs 1000s of software engineers, product managers, designers, etc. There's probably more economists working in these labs than philosophers...

deadbabe 2mo ago
Starbucks employs orders of magnitude more philosophers than any AI labs.
- airstrike 2mo ago
  and famously doesn't require a degree
- jayd16 2mo ago
  If pay, hours, benefits, and type of work mean nothing to you, then maybe this is an apt point.
  - appreciatorBus 2mo ago
    If service to others and to society mean anything to you, working in Starbucks or any fast food job will teach you more about humanity and human society than most college grads learn from a humanities degree.
    - pohl 2mo ago
      But will it help those baristas pay off the student loans that paid for their philosophy degrees?
    - quixoticaxolotl 2mo ago
      Helping a mega-corporation make an extra buck is not "service to society". If you meant doing a service job at a small business, where you can have real ownership over how it treats its customers, I would agree with you.
      - appreciatorBus 2mo ago
        The mega corp is making 3.98% profit. Sure you could focus all your time at Starbucks on that 3.98%, but most of us would focus on the other 96% which is helping customers.
    - OtherShrezzing 2mo ago
      It’s difficult to articulate the tedium and monotony of a Starbucks gig. There’s so little intellectual stimulation available in that setting. If you managed to learn more from your fast food than your humanities degree, then I think that’s on you for not paying attention at college (perhaps because you were exhausted from your job?).
      - ElProlactin 2mo ago
        > If you managed to learn more from your fast food than your humanities degree... It's not about learning "more". It's that earning a degree is an academic undertaking whereas working at a coffee shop is "real life". There is no need to treat one as more or less valuable/useful than the other. They're just different kinds of human experiences. Learning is possible from both.
      - casey2 2mo ago
        [dead]
      - appreciatorBus 2mo ago
        If you find that sort of work, tedious and monotonous, then I think that says more about you than the job. I’ve been a janitor, a barista and a software developer, and they all are fascinating and fulfilling in different ways. Of course if purely measuring on status, comfort and financial renumeration software dev currently beats them all handily, but to imagine there is nothing you could learn, nothing interesting, nothing fulfilling in other types of work is pretty arrogant. The lefties might even call it privileged.
- fearmerchant 2mo ago
  Ok, you got me. It took me a minute.
- deleted 2mo ago
  [deleted]
datakan 2mo ago
If the AI is digesting all the philosophy material ever published then why do they need philosophers?
- The_Blade 2mo ago
  knowing all the philosophy every published is not being a philosopher there was literature about 15 years or so ago stating Philosophy as being an uncommonly lucrative course of study, in part citing Reid Hoffman it is a way of thinking
  - antonvs 2mo ago
    > knowing all the philosophy every published is not being a philosopher Debatable. We may need to ask a philosopher.
  - bix6 2mo ago
    Philosopher vs MBA. Everyone dogs on MBAs. Philosophy can have strong mid career earnings especially if you go into law. Or get lucky like Reid did.
- yepyoukno 2mo ago
  Philosophy is a living process of integrating ideas. Classical materials are the whetstone upon which the mind is sharpened. Unlike history, where literal established accounts are ideal, in philosophy one is expected to view today (or the future) through the lens of contextual discourse. While there is “no right answer” understanding what the issues are and how the discussion plays out is relevant.
  - ButlerianJihad 2mo ago
    I believe that you mean “whetstone”.
- genxy 2mo ago
  That is not what AI is. AI is a powerful tool, a semiautonomous set of wood working tools that still need a master craftsperson to use. You need the tool+genius to drive it. Everyone wants to shoot down AI but they think AI will do everything. Being proud of a creation where someone did style transfer between spongebob and Rembrandt and they think they made art. About as responsible for actual art as just downloading images from google.
sleepybrett 2mo ago
... and why would they train for a job where everything they say that seeks to curtail expansion would be ignored.
applicative 2mo ago
I would have thought so too, a priori, but at this point three former colleagues are working for Anthropic; the most extraordinary case, one of the brainiest people I have known, was announced this week.

by jipl104 2mo ago

deadbabe 2mo ago

Starbucks employs orders of magnitude more philosophers than any AI labs.

airstrike 2mo ago
and famously doesn't require a degree
jayd16 2mo ago
If pay, hours, benefits, and type of work mean nothing to you, then maybe this is an apt point.
- appreciatorBus 2mo ago
  If service to others and to society mean anything to you, working in Starbucks or any fast food job will teach you more about humanity and human society than most college grads learn from a humanities degree.
  - pohl 2mo ago
    But will it help those baristas pay off the student loans that paid for their philosophy degrees?
  - quixoticaxolotl 2mo ago
    Helping a mega-corporation make an extra buck is not "service to society". If you meant doing a service job at a small business, where you can have real ownership over how it treats its customers, I would agree with you.
    - appreciatorBus 2mo ago
      The mega corp is making 3.98% profit. Sure you could focus all your time at Starbucks on that 3.98%, but most of us would focus on the other 96% which is helping customers.
  - OtherShrezzing 2mo ago
    It’s difficult to articulate the tedium and monotony of a Starbucks gig. There’s so little intellectual stimulation available in that setting. If you managed to learn more from your fast food than your humanities degree, then I think that’s on you for not paying attention at college (perhaps because you were exhausted from your job?).
    - ElProlactin 2mo ago
      > If you managed to learn more from your fast food than your humanities degree... It's not about learning "more". It's that earning a degree is an academic undertaking whereas working at a coffee shop is "real life". There is no need to treat one as more or less valuable/useful than the other. They're just different kinds of human experiences. Learning is possible from both.
    - casey2 2mo ago
      [dead]
    - appreciatorBus 2mo ago
      If you find that sort of work, tedious and monotonous, then I think that says more about you than the job. I’ve been a janitor, a barista and a software developer, and they all are fascinating and fulfilling in different ways. Of course if purely measuring on status, comfort and financial renumeration software dev currently beats them all handily, but to imagine there is nothing you could learn, nothing interesting, nothing fulfilling in other types of work is pretty arrogant. The lefties might even call it privileged.
fearmerchant 2mo ago
Ok, you got me. It took me a minute.
deleted 2mo ago
[deleted]

datakan 2mo ago

If the AI is digesting all the philosophy material ever published then why do they need philosophers?

The_Blade 2mo ago
knowing all the philosophy every published is not being a philosopher there was literature about 15 years or so ago stating Philosophy as being an uncommonly lucrative course of study, in part citing Reid Hoffman it is a way of thinking
- antonvs 2mo ago
  > knowing all the philosophy every published is not being a philosopher Debatable. We may need to ask a philosopher.
- bix6 2mo ago
  Philosopher vs MBA. Everyone dogs on MBAs. Philosophy can have strong mid career earnings especially if you go into law. Or get lucky like Reid did.
yepyoukno 2mo ago
Philosophy is a living process of integrating ideas. Classical materials are the whetstone upon which the mind is sharpened. Unlike history, where literal established accounts are ideal, in philosophy one is expected to view today (or the future) through the lens of contextual discourse. While there is “no right answer” understanding what the issues are and how the discussion plays out is relevant.
- ButlerianJihad 2mo ago
  I believe that you mean “whetstone”.
genxy 2mo ago
That is not what AI is. AI is a powerful tool, a semiautonomous set of wood working tools that still need a master craftsperson to use. You need the tool+genius to drive it. Everyone wants to shoot down AI but they think AI will do everything. Being proud of a creation where someone did style transfer between spongebob and Rembrandt and they think they made art. About as responsible for actual art as just downloading images from google.

sleepybrett 2mo ago

... and why would they train for a job where everything they say that seeks to curtail expansion would be ignored.

applicative 2mo ago

I would have thought so too, a priori, but at this point three former colleagues are working for Anthropic; the most extraordinary case, one of the brainiest people I have known, was announced this week.