We look at the new book by Simon Horton. See more about The End of Conflict: How AI Will End War and Help Us Get On Better here.
The End of Conflict:, How AI Will End War and Help Us Get On Better, reviewed
We enjoyed reading this book. Initially we felt the title was counter intuitive, and it seems like the author also had thoughts, and doubts about this premise. Without giving away a plot spoiler it does that, by the end of the book, the author is not completely convinced himself either whether we can be completely confident about AI either. However, before we get to this slightly disconcerting ending the author does take us on a thoughtful, and provoking discussion of some potential positive benefits that could come from AI.
Horton discusses how AI could help with conflict resolution, including for couples. While you can imagine the initial skepticism he does a good job of explaining how and why it might work, and could, quite quickly become adopted and used subsequently. As with all things, if you can get to trying it once, and this has positive results, people are quite likely to then return again and again, with even better outcomes.
Horton is aware that things could all go pear shaped too when it comes to AI and the future of humanity too. While he explores and explains in a convincing way the paths that could lead to better outcomes, he also accepts that this is not a sure thing, and that we do live in risky times. This is probably a fair way to treat the options in front of us. A well written book, worth reading and following Horton’s exploration of these challenging times.
See more about the book here
The end of conflict? Sounds impossible, like the lion lying down with the lamb. But what if it were achievable?
World-renowned Negotiation expert Simon Horton has spent 25 years working with the British Army, hostage negotiators and some of the biggest companies in the world. He has also spent 20 years studying artificial intelligence and he reveals how the rapidly growing field of Peace Tech really could end war, heal our polarised societies, and improve our closest relationships.
Humans know how to resolve conflict in theory but, in practice, our egos and emotions get in the way. AI has no such limitations. With its ability to manage vast datasets and develop creative solutions to seemingly intractable problems, AI could transform how we handle disagreements at every level.
There’s a catch, of course. Can we trust the AI? Can we trust the tech companies?
Including interviews with Professor Steven Pinker, Bruce Schneier and many similar experts in their field, “The End of Conflict” builds a plausible roadmap to the optimistic future of the title and shows what we must do to ensure everyone benefits fairly from these powerful new technologies.
More about the author
Simon Horton is the founder of Negotiation Mastery, a centre of excellence in the world of negotiation.
His mother was Irish Catholic and his father English Protestant. He grew up in the 1970s and every time there was a bomb in Northern Ireland, the civil war was fought at his dining table. Even at the age of 10, he knew there was a better way.
He has been teaching negotiation and conflict resolution for 20 years, across 25 different countries. Clients have included Goldman Sachs, HM British Army, the Saudi Space Agency and many similar world class organisations. He has taught at Oxford University and Imperial College and has appeared on national television in multiple countries and is regularly interviewed on the topic in national press and magazines.
Prior to teaching negotiation, he led a successful career as a consultant to the financial services sector, designing derivatives trading systems and similar platforms. He was first involved with AI in 1988 and his interest grew with Moore’s Law. By 2005, and the publication of Ray Kurzweil’s “The Singularity Is Near”, he had become obsessed.
He has performed as a stand-up comedian and a trapeze artist and he is expecting West Ham United to win the Premier League soon.
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