[glenstein]

I similarly find myself frustrated with philosophy of mind "contributions" to conversations on deep learning/consciousness/AI. There seems to be a lot of equivocation between the things you label as (a) and (b) above, and a lot of apathy toward distinguishing between them. But (a) and (b) are completely different things, and too often it seems like critics of computers doing smart things treat arguments for one like they are arguments for the other.

Probably the most famous AI critic, Hubert Dreyfus, said "current claims and hopes for progress in models for making computers intelligent are like the belief that someone climbing a tree is making progress toward reaching the moon." But it is progress. Because by climbing a tree I've gained much more than height. I actually did move toward the moon. I've gained the insight that I'm using the right principle.