Jeff Sebo Profile picture
Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Director of the Center for Environmental & Animal Protection & the Center for Mind, Ethics, & Policy @nyuniversity
Sep 19 20 tweets 6 min read
1/ My @TEDx talk “What Do We Owe AI?” is now live! AI is advancing fast, and our relationships with AI systems are changing too. Some think AI could soon be sentient and deserve care. Are they right? What if the only honest answer is: maybe? 🧵+🔗👇 Image 2/ Based on my 2024 report with @rgblong and others, this talk makes three basic points: (1) we have deep uncertainty about the nature of sentience, (2) we have deep uncertainty about the future of AI, and (3) when in doubt, we should exercise caution.

tedxnewengland.com/speakers/jeff-…
Aug 15, 2022 14 tweets 3 min read
The world is rightly condemning the killing of Freya. Freya was a climate refugee, and humans killed her rather than welcoming her into their community.

What we now need to appreciate is that this case is only the tip of the (melting) iceberg. 🧵

washingtonpost.com/world/2022/08/… As I discuss in my book Saving Animals, Saving Ourselves, humans already kill animals in many cases where our interests appear to conflict, even if the stakes for animals are much higher, and even if other forms of conflict resolution are available. 2/

global.oup.com/academic/produ…
Feb 22, 2022 10 tweets 4 min read
Today is the official U.S. release of Saving Animals, Saving Ourselves!

Animals matter for pandemics, climate change, and other catastrophes, and these catastrophes also matter for animals. This book examines the science, ethics, and politics of these relationships. 1/10 COVID-19, floods, fires, and other recent disasters remind us that human and nonhuman fates are linked. Our use of animals contributes to pandemics, climate change, and other threats which, in turn, contribute to biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse, and nonhuman suffering. 2/10