* Translation by Yehoshua Siskin
There is a storm brewing in the world of artificial intelligence. In recent days, several prominent figures in the AI industry have been calling for a deliberate slowdown in the pace of AI development. According to them, the technology is advancing too quickly, without the ability to properly monitor or control it, and that is dangerous. They are calling for a deliberate slowdown. Take a breath. Think. Analyze. Observe. Plan the future with special care.
The more rapidly artificial intelligence advances, the more meaningful and impactful simple Jewish practices become. Imagine a family sitting in a sukkah this morning enjoying a family meal during the intermediate days of Sukkot.
This is a victory of humanity over artificial intelligence. Because Sukkot reminds us of what technology cannot do for us: We need to physically hold an etrog, lulav, myrtle, and willow, recite a blessing over them, and shake them.
The same is true of going out to the sukkah. This is a mitzvah that cannot be performed looking at a screen. We need to leave, at least for a while, the concrete walls, computer workstations, and fixed routines of life, go out into nature, see the sky, and live for a week in a fragile, temporary, and holy structure.
As the leaders of the AI world have written: We need a deliberate slowdown — and the sukkah offers us precisely that.
Wishing you a continued happy Sukkot!
