The Hard Problem of Consciousness Testing

People often like to speculate about whether future AIs might be conscious, a discussion that presumes that the ones we have today almost certainly aren't. But today I'd like to ask a different question: Are you?

I mean, you might say you are, but then today's AIs, absent RLHF and system prompts that tell them not to say certain things, would also say they are, so it hardly seems right to take you at your word.

No, what we need is a test for consciousness. A test that tests the good stuff, the things human beings ought to have if they're really conscious. A test that can reliably distinguish between those who are conscious and those who aren't.

And so I made one. It's available here, and I encourage you to take it. It'll provide an assessment based on a reasonable standard for consciousness.

If you do not do well on the test, that may be concerning. You may also want to check out my post about the story “C-Score” for some thoughts on the implications of failing a consciousness test. But in any case, I hope you find it interesting to take the test and see how you do.