As artificial intelligence (AI) redefines the modern world, Zoho co-founder and ex-CEO Sridhar Vembu has predicted that religion will hold even greater importance in the post-AI era. Vembu was responding to a social media post discussing modernity, religion, and AI. The Zoho chief scientist argued that being modernist and post-religious equates to ‘demographic suicide’.
Referring to the growing capabilities of AI, Vembu suggested that technology could challenge humanity’s sense of intellectual superiority. “And then AI, which ends our intellectual pretense. What is left that is truly human?
Vembu argued that modern society simply exists because the previous generations had “real faith” rather than being merely “spiritual”. “Modernist and post-religious” produce demographic suicide. We are here because our ancestors had faith, no not the “spiritual but not religious” kind, I mean real faith,” said Vembu. I suggest Nature, Nurture, Culture and Scripture; the core of Sanatana Dharma is that all of these are connected,” he said. “Anyway, I will make this prediction: religion will become even more important in the post-AI landscape.”
As the post gained traction, a section of users agreed with Vembu’s assessment, while others vehemently opposed his idea of religion having a pivotal part. Faith or belief is not something unique to our ancestors. All primitive societies have that. Maybe the very first days of religion itself: discourses, chintan , seeking, questioning everything. A third commented: “This is bound to happen whether one agrees or not but he is the founder of one of the most successful company and we should take his predictions seriously. This is not the first instance when Vembu has shared his AI-related predictions. “The premise behind the extraordinary AI investment wave is this: the only technology that will matter is AI. Expanding on his idea, Vembu explained that AI would be able to find solutions to climate change and help find medicines to cure cancer. “AI will help solve the housing affordability problem in cities. AI will help us end war (okay, maybe this one is my hallucination!) If you accept the fundamental premise and the concrete examples listed above, the only technology worth working on is AI,” he added.
Because they can all be reinvented and vastly improved by a powerful enough AI,” Vembu wrote, all other technology will be subsumed by AI.
“Namaste Sridhar Ji, I disagree with everything you said. But, as we evolve, we drop the “irrational” parts,” said one user while another added: “Yes, religion will make a comeback, but not blind faith religion will become like the olden days. Vembu said he believes that every facet of human life will eventually be reinvented and significantly improved by AI technology.
Previously, he claimed that AI will be the only technology that truly matters in the near future.
