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The post “Dreams of Friendliness” (2008-08-31) contests Y15. Answers the proposal, stated in the preceding paragraph, that a question-answering AI 'wouldn't need any goals at all'. Argues that producing superintelligent answers requires powerful optimisation. Copy claim link
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Supporting evidence: primary · 1 source
Date 2008-08-31 · publication Role Contesting Register (kind of text) Nonfiction Engagement Engages a premise. Under the message-level rule, the passage, read with the paragraph, message or dialogue turn it belongs to, gives a reason against the premise that a system can be highly capable without having goals or optimising for outcomes. Scope and limits Premise addressed: A system can be highly capable without having goals or optimising for outcomes. Imported Overcoming Bias post dated 31 August 2008.
The evidence 01 primary source Supports the claim
Dreams of Friendliness ↗ Overcoming Bias · 2008-08-31
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Source excerpt “To which the reply is that the AI needs goals in order to decide how to think: that is, the AI has to act as a powerful optimization process in order to plan its acquisition of knowledge” Location in source 'Dreams of Friendliness', paragraph beginning 'To which the reply is'
Machine-checked · 2026-10-06
Source details and check notes Authors Eliezer Yudkowsky Version Post body retrieved through the LessWrong GraphQL API on 2026-10-06 (SHA-256 fd5c89f98d714963141cf329d6edfe2218980604eba334e0c1c3d9880d4f4219), content version 1.1.0; quotations also compared with the posting-day version 1.0.0. As imported to LessWrong. Canonical address Open the canonical source ↗ Accessed 2026-10-06 Language English (en) Attribution Eliezer Yudkowsky, “Dreams of Friendliness”, Overcoming Bias, as imported to LessWrong, 2008-08-31. Reuse No open redistribution licence asserted. Bibliographic metadata, editorial paraphrases and short attributed quotations (at most 50 words each). Recheck terms before wider redistribution. Check notes Candidate pack passage T15-b. The quotation (37 words) matched the retrieved expression (SHA-256 fd5c89f98d714963141cf329d6edfe2218980604eba334e0c1c3d9880d4f4219) when checked on 2026-10-06. It also matched the posting-day version 1.0.0. Pack version note: edited post, current version 1.1.0; posting-day check pending. Status and meaning Editorial status. Not reviewed by an editor . An exploratory record that no editor has accepted. This status does not say whether a person has read any linked passage. Each evidence record above shows how it was checked.
Relation. A passage of the document disputes the proposition or a premise it depends on. The record documents the text’s position, not who is right.
Date. LessWrong postedAt of an imported Overcoming Bias post (Overcoming Bias date).
Record ID yk-y15-lw-2008-dreams-of-friendliness-c