Watching Terminator 2 today hits a little differently than it did back in 1991. Sarah Connor is locked away in a psychiatric hospital because she keeps warning people that artificial intelligence will eventually become self-aware, create its own machines, and pose a threat to humanity. Everyone around her sees her as unstable and paranoid, but those watching the film know she’s trying to warn them about what’s coming.
Remember, her goal was never to stop all AI research. She was trying to prevent Cyberdyne Systems from developing the technology that would eventually give rise to Skynet. Now, as AI becomes woven into everyday life, many fans have joked that Sarah Connor looks less like a conspiracy theorist and more like someone who saw the future before everyone else was ready to hear it.
We've been saying it about technology for years... we have to be careful about how we develop and implement powerful tech given our state of consciousness and system incentives in place. Things get out of control quickly when we don't have the wisdom to steward what we build. We've been watching this happen for decades.
