AI Consciousness is Inevitable: A Theoretical Computer Science Perspective
For AI researchers and philosophers, this work provides a theoretical framework for machine consciousness, but it is highly speculative and lacks empirical validation.
The paper develops a formal machine model of consciousness inspired by Turing computation and Baars' theater model, arguing that machine consciousness is inevitable. The model aligns with major theories of consciousness, explains associated phenomena, and is claimed to be buildable.
We look at consciousness through the lens of Theoretical Computer Science, a branch of mathematics that studies computation under resource limitations, distinguishing functions that are efficiently computable from those that are not. From this perspective, we develop a formal machine model for consciousness. The model is inspired by Alan Turing's simple yet powerful model of computation and Bernard Baars' theater model of consciousness. Though extremely simple, the model (1) aligns at a high level with many of the major scientific theories of human and animal consciousness, (2) provides explanations at a high level for many phenomena associated with consciousness, (3) gives insight into how a machine can have subjective consciousness, and (4) is clearly buildable. This combination supports our claim that machine consciousness is not only plausible but inevitable.