[willis936]

In order to reach that end you need to break character and choose to stop making paperclips. As a human player you always have this choice; you can stop playing anytime. The paperclip AI will always choose to make more paperclips.

[asoneth]

I think everyone here is trying to avoid spoilers while conveying that there is more to the game than you think initially.

(You may already know that from reading the article or playing the game, but it's not clear from your comment.)

[willis936]

I think everyone here is either misreading my comments or misremembering the end of the game.

[asoneth]

> everyone here is either misreading my comments

I suspect I misread your comment in that case, so I apologize. Though if everyone else did as well, perhaps the comment was ambiguous?

> or misremembering the end of the game.

Exactly, there is a point that is pretty clearly "the end of the game". The fact that one can continue playing after that point doesn't make it less of an ending.

[willis936]

My comments are not ambiguously worded. They are made concise so my point can't be missed, yet it still is because readers are mistaking conciseness for lack of understanding.

The end of the game is something a human player reaches and is satisfied with their work. A paperclip producing AI would not choose a path that results in no more paperclips being made.

[asoneth]

If many people misinterpret a piece of writing or miss its point then that seems like it is empirically "ambiguously worded", regardless of how clear it seemed to you.

(You are of course free to think and write how you please, but attributing all comprehension errors to readers may limit the reach of your writing.)

[chris_st]

> * My comments are not ambiguously worded. They are made concise so my point can't be missed*

"It is impossible to speak in such a way that it cannot be misinterpreted." -- Karl Popper

[eru]

Depends on how the AI was programmed.

If it got the goal to make as many paperclips in this universe, the game can end in-universe as well.

[mrob]

You can convert the entire universe into paperclips and reach the end credits in a few hours. The start of the game can be sped up by setting your keyboard autorepeat to maximum and pressing buttons by holding down enter.

[AndrewDucker]

Nope, you can end it by making paperclips. The last button you click, in fact, will be the "Make Paperclip" one.

[willis936]

Can. In order to reach that end you need to break character and choose to stop making paperclips. The Paperclip AI is always propositioned to be able to make more paperclips or to not. Which would they choose?

[AndrewDucker]

I replayed it recently. Fairly sure that I just had to choose to not come to terms with my enemies and then to continue turning things into paperclips.

[willis936]

Which is you, the human player, choosing to stop making paperclips. The AI is presented with an opportunity to make infinitely more paperclips.

[rytill]

Why are you so confident in this hypothesis? Did you create the game?

It is not at all clear that every hypothetical AGI would do as you say. It’s fiction. Anything can happen.

In fact, this AGI almost definitely wouldn’t accept the simulation offer. Otherwise our protagonist would have been making simulations and resetting them instead of doing the hard work of turning the actual universe into paperclips.

[dllthomas]

If it was in it for the experience of making the paperclips, it also seems like probes isn't a way to achieve that.

[dllthomas]

Infinite virtual paperclips, which may or may not satisfy the AI's utility function.

[ctdonath]

But then you don’t make everything into clips. The pressure to finish this job is palatable.

[dllthomas]

... for a human. I think this is still anthropomorphism.

[ctdonath]

First time through, I chose to stop, declining the offer to continue - which was in character, bent on not giving in to not making everything into paperclips. Then I learned how done “done” is.

Make paperclip.