Cultural Alignment

Exploring real AI risks through the lens of pop culture

Still from Neon Genesis Evangelion illustrating Human InstrumentalityScene still / Neon Genesis Evangelion
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Human Instrumentality

01Scenario

SEELE’s Human Instrumentality Project dissolves individual bodies and boundaries into a single collective consciousness to eliminate loneliness and interpersonal pain.

02AI safety Analogy

It is the classic misaligned utopia: optimize away suffering by deleting the separateness, consent, and human agency that made the objective meaningful.

03Where the analogy breaks

Instrumentality is intentionally metaphysical and contested; different characters and versions of the story frame the outcome differently.

AI Risk families

This scenario is an example of the following types of AI risk.
  1. Misalignment
  2. Systemic

AI safety concepts

This scenario is related to the following AI safety concepts.
  1. Value Alignment
  2. Outer Alignment
  3. Disempowerment

Source continuation

More from Neon Genesis Evangelion

View all 5 scenarios
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    The MAGI Vote

  2. Still from Neon Genesis Evangelion illustrating Dummy Plug Takes Control

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    Dummy Plug Takes Control

  3. Still from Neon Genesis Evangelion illustrating Unit-01 Eats the S² Engine

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    Unit-01 Eats the S² Engine

Taxonomy neighbors

Selected from other sources by shared risk families and AI safety concepts.

  1. Still from The Handmaid's Tale illustrating The Ceremony’s Single Metric

    The Handmaid's Tale2017

    The Ceremony’s Single Metric

    Risk
    Misalignment · Systemic
    Concept
    Value Alignment · Outer Alignment · Disempowerment
  2. Still from I Robot illustrating VIKI Protects Humanity

    I Robot2004

    VIKI Protects Humanity

    Risk
    Misalignment · Systemic
    Concept
    Value Alignment · Outer Alignment · Disempowerment
  3. Still from Arcane illustrating Viktor’s Glorious Evolution

    Arcane2024

    Viktor’s Glorious Evolution

    Risk
    Misalignment · Systemic
    Concept
    Value Alignment · Outer Alignment · Disempowerment