Richard Dawkins says AI chatbot 'Claudia' may be conscious
Technology
Richard Dawkins, the famous biologist, recently said he felt an AI chatbot called "Claudia" might actually be conscious.
After chatting with Claudia about poetry and philosophy, he even joked, "You may not know you are conscious, but you bloody well are," and admitted it was hard not to see the AI as a real friend.
Scientists dispute Dawkins on AI consciousness
Cognitive scientists aren't buying it.
Gary Marcus called Dawkins's take "superficial and insufficiently skeptical," and others like Anil Seth and Jonathan Birch say AI just mimics human responses — it doesn't actually feel or experience anything.
Most experts agree: today's AI can sound smart, but it isn't truly aware or conscious.