I recently received the following e-mail from the Singularity Institute. I thought I’d pass it along to you verbatim to increase awareness of the organization.
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Dear All:
Here is the latest news from the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence (SIAI).
1. We have released the first video about our philanthropic purpose, including interviews with Dr. Aubrey de Grey, Peter Thiel, Dr. Barney Pell, Christine Peterson, and more.
http://www.digg.com/videos
Please help ensure the SIAI video receives as much exposure as possible by clicking “digg it” at the above URL. Joining only takes a few seconds, and it’s a great way to support SIAI.
Please consider voting, since the first few hours after submission are the most important for whether it makes it to the front page of Digg, which is one of the 100 most popular sites in the world.
2. A new video in the SIAI Interview Series has been released, this time with SIAI Research Fellow Eliezer Yudkowsky, discussing his research on Friendly AI.
http://video.google.com
3. Dr. Rodney Brooks and Dr. Peter Norvig have joined our growing lineup of speakers for the Singularity Summit 2007 at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco on September 8th - 9th.
Dr. Brooks is Director of the MIT Computer Science and AI Laboratory, and Dr. Norvig is Director of Research at Google.
4. We have released our May 20th press release through PR Web about the SIAI Matching Challenge and award-winning inventor and author Ray Kurzweil joining the SIAI Board of Directors.
http://www.prweb.com/releases
5. Cameron Reilly, CEO of The Podcast Network, has released a one-hour podcast interview with Eliezer:
http://gdayworld.thepodcastnet
6. Every year the Singularity Institute runs an annual challenge grant to give our supporters an opportunity to double the impact of their donations. (We only do this once a year out of respect for our supporters.) We are presently running a $400,000 challenge to underwrite our research, education, and outreach expansion. If we reach $200,000 in total donations and pledges by midnight tomorrow, Monday, May 21st, then PayPal Co-Founder Peter Thiel will commit an extra $50,000. You can learn more, including how donations will be allocated, at http://www.singinst.org
If you are going to give this year, then you can make a verbal or written pledge to SIAI at this time (to be fulfilled by 12/31/2007), which will ensure every dollar you give will be matched. You can pledge by replying to this email.
7. Finally, if you are interested, the following are a few other ways you can help SIAI:
* Add a positive comment at Digg and YouTube to increase interest:
http://www.digg.com/videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A9pGhwQbS0
* Share the SIAI video at YouTube with your family, friends, and acquaintances. Ask them to watch the video to learn more about a philanthropic cause that you value.
* Email people you think may be interested in SIAI, and post to relevant mailing lists.
* Share the following Peter Thiel video with others so that they can see the increasing weight behind SIAI’s mission:
http://www.singinst.org/media
* Add http://singinst.org/ to your email and forum signature files.
* Share the SIAI PDF, and encourage people to read “Why Work Toward the Singularity?”:
http://www.singinst.org/upload
http://www.singinst.org
With best wishes,
—
Tyler Emerson | Co-Founder & Executive Director
Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence
P.O . Box 50182, Palo Alto, CA 94303 USA
650-353-6063 | emerson@singinst.org | singinst.org