The Download: the Kids issue arrives, and Bill Gates reveals his AI fears

The Download: The Kids Issue Arrives, and Bill Gates Reveals His AI Fears

The Download：儿童特刊发布，比尔·盖茨透露他对人工智能的担忧

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. 这是今天《The Download》的内容，这是我们的工作日通讯，为您提供每日科技界动态。

Introducing: the Kids issue

导读：儿童特刊

If the desire to limit kids’ use of technology was once a subcurrent, it has become a raging flood. Countries around the world are banning children from social media. Schools across the US are ditching iPads and Chromebooks for actual books. Kids themselves seem to be embracing this tech skepticism too: the hottest gadget for Gen Alpha is a vintage Sony Walkman. 如果说限制儿童使用科技产品曾经只是一种暗流，那么现在它已经演变成了一场汹涌的洪水。世界各国都在禁止儿童使用社交媒体。美国各地的学校正在放弃 iPad 和 Chromebook，转而使用真正的书籍。孩子们自己似乎也接受了这种对科技的怀疑态度：对于“阿尔法世代”（Gen Alpha）来说，最热门的电子产品竟然是复古的索尼随身听。

A surprising—maybe troubling—number of people who work in big tech also keep their kids at arm’s distance from technology. They lock down their phones, if they have phones at all, and keep them off social media. Hell, even Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t publicly post his children’s faces on Facebook or Instagram. 令人惊讶——或许也令人不安的是——许多在大型科技公司工作的人也将自己的孩子与科技保持距离。他们会锁定孩子的手机（如果他们有手机的话），并让他们远离社交媒体。见鬼，就连马克·扎克伯格也不会在 Facebook 或 Instagram 上公开他孩子的面孔。

Yet there is no hiding from technology. It permeates nearly everything, everywhere. We have to prepare our children to live in the actual world we have actually created, not the one we wish we had. How can we help kids survive and thrive in what we have wrought? That’s what the new Kids issue of MIT Technology Review is all about. 然而，科技无处不在，我们无处可藏。它渗透到几乎所有地方的每一件事物中。我们必须让孩子们准备好生活在我们所创造的现实世界中，而不是我们希望拥有的那个世界。我们该如何帮助孩子们在我们所造就的环境中生存并茁壮成长？这正是《麻省理工科技评论》新一期“儿童特刊”的主题。

With the help of the editors of Anyway, a fantastic magazine for teens and tweens, we explore how young people really feel about AI, the support networks helping kids through the polycrisis, and what happens when a child’s robot best friend dies. We also ask why kids outlearn AI, whether monitoring apps are really keeping children safe online, how schools can encourage smarter AI use, and what happens when technology begins to reshape childhood itself, courtesy of exclusive new fiction from author and AI ethicist Jenny Williams. 在面向青少年和青春期前儿童的精彩杂志《Anyway》编辑们的帮助下，我们探讨了年轻人对人工智能的真实感受、帮助孩子们度过“多重危机”的支持网络，以及当一个孩子的机器人挚友“死亡”时会发生什么。我们还探讨了为什么孩子比人工智能学得更快、监控应用程序是否真的能保障儿童在线安全、学校如何鼓励更明智地使用人工智能，以及当科技开始重塑童年本身时会发生什么——这部分内容由作家兼人工智能伦理学家珍妮·威廉姆斯（Jenny Williams）提供的独家新小说呈现。

Together, these stories examine how childhood is changing in an age of AI—and how we can help kids navigate the world we’ve made. Subscribe now to read the print issue in full. 这些故事共同审视了在人工智能时代童年是如何改变的，以及我们如何帮助孩子们驾驭我们所创造的世界。立即订阅以阅读印刷版的全部内容。

Bill Gates says we’ve passed AI’s danger thresholds. Now what? —Mat Honan

比尔·盖茨称我们已经跨越了人工智能的危险阈值。接下来该怎么办？——Mat Honan

It’s a glorious day in Kirkland, Washington, an affluent Seattle suburb on the eastern shore of Lake Washington. The temperature is in the mid-80s, the sky is incapable of being any more blue, and the view is gorgeous. And vaguely terrifying. Because if the scene is placid, the messenger is not. 在华盛顿州柯克兰（Kirkland），这是一个位于华盛顿湖东岸、西雅图富裕的郊区，天气好极了。气温在华氏 80 多度（约 29 摄氏度），天空蓝得不能再蓝，景色美不胜收。但同时也隐约让人感到恐惧。因为如果说眼前的景象是平静的，那么传达信息的人却并非如此。

Seated across from me at a conference room table, Bill Gates is rocking back and forth in his chair. And the more he has to say—about the threats of terror or economic collapse or just losing control of our AI systems—the more agitated I find myself becoming, too. 坐在会议桌对面，比尔·盖茨在椅子上前后摇晃。他说的越多——关于恐怖主义威胁、经济崩溃，或者仅仅是失去对人工智能系统的控制——我就发现自己也变得越发不安。

The philanthropist and former Microsoft CEO says he has been growing increasingly alarmed by the rate at which AI technology is advancing, especially since guardrails are not keeping pace. “We’ve crossed the threshold in terms of [AI’s] bio-capabilities, cyber-capabilities, psychosocial capabilities, job-market-destruction capabilities, and even the lack of control,” he said. “I’m just stunned at the lack of concern and discussion outside of the industry.” 这位慈善家兼前微软首席执行官表示，他对人工智能技术的发展速度越来越感到担忧，尤其是因为安全护栏的建设并没有跟上步伐。“在人工智能的生物能力、网络能力、社会心理能力、破坏就业市场的能力，甚至失控风险方面，我们都已经跨越了阈值，”他说。“我对行业之外缺乏关注和讨论感到震惊。”

Read the full interview with Bill Gates about the AI risks he says we’ve already crossed—and what we should do now. 阅读对比尔·盖茨的完整采访，了解他所说的我们已经跨越的人工智能风险，以及我们现在应该做什么。

The must-reads

必读内容

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 我梳理了互联网，为您找出了今天关于科技的最有趣、最重要、最可怕和最引人入胜的故事。

Trump’s EPA aims to exempt data centers from disclosing air pollution 特朗普的环保署（EPA）旨在豁免数据中心披露空气污染信息 The EPA would also remove requirements for public input. (NYT) 环保署还将取消公众意见征询的要求。（《纽约时报》） The move is likely intended to curb criticism and oversight. (Guardian) 此举旨在遏制批评和监督。（《卫报》） Texas’s attorney general has joined the data-center backlash. (WP) 德克萨斯州总检察长加入了反对数据中心的行列。（《华盛顿邮报》） We did the math on AI’s energy footprint. (MIT Technology Review) 我们计算了人工智能的能源足迹。（《麻省理工科技评论》）
SpaceX plans $100 billion launch site in Louisiana—its largest yet SpaceX 计划在路易斯安那州建设价值 1000 亿美元的发射场——这是其迄今为止最大的项目 Construction of the “Starbase, Louisiana” project is due to start next year. (BBC) “路易斯安那星际基地”项目的建设预计将于明年开始。（BBC） It would be SpaceX’s second private launch site, after the original Starbase. (NYT) 这将是继最初的星际基地之后，SpaceX 的第二个私人发射场。（《纽约时报》） The company said it will “support thousands of launches” annually. (CNBC) 该公司表示，它将每年“支持数千次发射”。（CNBC） But it’s cutting launches from Florida until Starship arrives. (Ars Technica) 但在“星舰”到位之前，它正在削减佛罗里达州的发射次数。（Ars Technica）
China’s Z.AI has confirmed it’s behind the mystery AI model Ox Alpha 中国的 Z.AI 已确认其为神秘人工智能模型 Ox Alpha 的幕后推手 The model has surged to the top of online usage charts. (Bloomberg) 该模型已飙升至在线使用排行榜榜首。（彭博社） China’s Moonshot is discussing a landmark deal with US hyperscalers. (Reuters) 中国的月之暗面（Moonshot）正在与美国超大规模云服务商商讨一项里程碑式的协议。（路透社） Here’s what’s next for Chinese open-source AI. (MIT Technology Review) 中国开源人工智能的下一步发展方向。（《麻省理工科技评论》）
Meta is discussing a settlement in its landmark teen-addiction trial Meta 正在就其具有里程碑意义的青少年成瘾诉讼案商讨和解 The case involves 29 states seeking penalties and changes. (Reuters) 该案涉及 29 个州，它们正在寻求处罚和改革。（路透社） A loss at trial could saddle Meta with $1.4 trillion in penalties. (Bloomberg) 审判败诉可能会让 Meta 背负 1.4 万亿美元的罚款。（彭博社）
Huawei wants to build data centers in Egypt 华为希望在埃及建设数据中心 The US is alarmed and is preparing a counteroffer. (Bloomberg) 美国对此感到警惕，并正在准备反制方案。（彭博社） HP has signed a licensing deal for Huawei WiFi tech. (CNBC) 惠普已签署了一项关于华为 WiFi 技术的许可协议。（CNBC）
Trump is upping the price of Big Tech’s favorite visa 特朗普正在提高大型科技公司最青睐的签证价格 He’s implementing a fee of over $103,000 on H-1B visas. (Verge) 他正在对 H-1B 签证实施超过 103,000 美元的费用。（The Verge） His immigration policies are hurting young researchers. (MIT Technology Review) 他的移民政策正在伤害年轻研究人员。（《麻省理工科技评论》）
Beijing fears that AI companions are replacing human intimacy 北京担心人工智能伴侣正在取代人类亲密关系 New rules aim to limit emotional dependence on chatbots. (Guardian) 新规旨在限制对聊天机器人的情感依赖。（《卫报》） It’s surprisingly easy to fall for a chatbot. (MIT Technology Review) 爱上聊天机器人竟然如此容易。（《麻省理工科技评论》）
Israel is running a synthetic think tank to influence AI search results 以色列正在运营一个合成智库以影响人工智能搜索结果 It’s using AI-generated content to shape chatbot responses. (404 Media) 它正在利用人工智能生成的内容来塑造聊天机器人的回复。（404 Media）
Physicists are closing in on a way to test string theory 物理学家即将找到测试弦理论的方法 A proposed dark dimension could be detectable within five years. (Economist) 一个被提出的“暗维度”可能在五年内被探测到。（《经济学人》）
AI music has been barred from the Australian charts, thanks to Madonna 多亏了麦当娜，人工智能音乐已被禁止进入澳大利亚排行榜 An AI-assisted cover of “Like a Prayer” helped prompt the ban. (Reuters) 一首人工智能辅助翻唱的《Like a Prayer》促成了这项禁令。（路透社）

Quote of the day

今日名言

“It is such an Orwellian technology being utilized by such comic book villain forces of evil trying to do dastardly things.” “这是一种极其奥威尔式的技术，被那些试图做卑劣勾当的漫画书式反派邪恶势力所利用。”

—Anthony Ralphs, an events producer who dressed up as Darth Vader to ironically praise Flock at a San Diego City Council meeting, tells 404 Media why he sees parallels between the Dark Lord and the surveillance firm. ——安东尼·拉尔夫斯（Anthony Ralphs），一位活动制作人，他在圣地亚哥市议会会议上打扮成达斯·维达（Darth Vader），讽刺地赞扬了监控公司 Flock。他向 404 Media 解释了为什么他认为这位“黑武士”与这家监控公司之间存在相似之处。

One More Thing

还有一件事

No one’s sure if synthetic mirror life will kill us all 没人确定合成镜像生命是否会杀死我们所有人

In February 2019, a group of scientists proposed a high-risk, cutting-edge, irr… 2019 年 2 月，一群科学家提出了一项高风险、前沿的、不合理的……（注：原文此处截断）