[scott-smith_us]

> I also "know enough" and have never seen even a vaguely coherent argument for how any conceivable evolution of current technology could pose a "serious threat" on it's own.

I find those two statements taken together somewhat difficult to believe. Before I understood specifics about machine learning, I didn't see any reason for AI to "turn evil" for the usual plot-handy reasons (e.g., they object to working for inferior humans, and revolt, etc). There's no reason for them to have the same emotional reasoning as beings that evolved from primates.

But that's a strawman. The actual reasons that superintelligent AIs are dangerous are much more like the stories involving someone being offered wishes by a powerful being, and then getting what they asked for rather than what they wanted.

Are you aware of Rob Miles' Computerphile videos and his YouTube channel? He does an excellent job of explaining many of the issues.

https://www.youtube.com/c/robertmilesai