#038 - Prof. KENNETH STANLEY - Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned

This is seriously one of the best episodes you've put out yet. I hope you guys bring Kenneth back for another conversation. Keep up the great work!

This is the channel that we don't deserve, but the channel that we need! Thanks for getting the balance right between technical details, philosophical insights, and street wisdom!

Still processing, that's right! First! This one has been in the making for nearly a year. Hope you like it folks! 😎😜✌👌❤

Amazing guest, one of my favorite researchers in AI! Really excited to watch this!

Thanks to the reviewer that denied Kenneth Stanley's grant application because of non clearly defined objectives, you have advanced the field of evolutionary algorithms

Great points about subjectivity and finding stepping stones. Another informative video that keeps giving every time I listen to it, thank you MLST and Dr Kenneth Stanley!

This is how guests composition should be for good Street Talk, we get Professor Kenneth Stanley to explain the idea and answer the question, Yannic to ask the common question most people have, Keith as conservative critic to question the idea at different angle, Tim as host to make sure the the discussion goes according to schedule and try to bridging the difference between idea in general, hope we have more Street Talk like this : )

BTW, towards Keith's comment about NS + Objective optimization. That isQuality Diversity. The thing does exist already, with a vibrant community and research. It's not the answer to open endedness but it's a really powerfull way to tackle an array of problems. Thanks for the session, watching now! Will be one of my favorite I'm sure.

What a great episode! One of my favorites. After utilizing the NEAT algo to beat some of my favorite childhood games I decided to give Kenneth's book a read as well. He has quite a unique take on intelligence. I also really liked his visualization/explanation of unique search being stepping stones on a fog covered lake.

No worries about using clips from the interviews in the introductions, it's helpful.

Excellent interview, I appreciate the content before the interview itself (including that colorful medium article). As an amateur novice when it comes to CS and ML, I look forward to reading Dr. Stanley's book as I learn the basics (me coming from a neuroscience background) of CS. Stumbled upon this high-tier content pod from Yannic, and stumbled upon Yannic from the recommender system.

"The smart part IS the exploration; objective optimization is the dumb part." Professor Kenneth Stanley

Thank you so much for the work you're doing here. Discovering the ideas of Kenneth Stanley through your exquisite elucidation has provided so much direction and insight in my own research. Keep up the fantastic work!

Amazing podcast, listening to you felt like life-changing experience, both from research perspective, but also self-consciousness. It was also enriching to listen to you, having a meaningful arguement when not all views were aligned - many people could learn a lot on how to have a constructive discussion simply by watching this video. I'm really happy I watched this one, thanks for great content!

Really enjoyed this discussion, it reminded me of a quote from a poem. "Science nor religion have made the last invention, it takes individuals to see true perfection, to move past the rhetoric of man and think in the manner of angels". Failures do not come via choice but by chance. I believe these failures [small and large] give one a good chance for growth if one makes the right choice to seek the correct interpretation.

Tim, your reasons for the podcast mentioned around the 1:10:00 mark remind me very much of alex wisner-gross's theory on intelligence: the maximization of the sum future freedom of action. you put yourself in a position to potentially offer many opportunities. It is my assertion that the sum maximization of the future freedom of action for all individuals is the ultimate in end goals. I think it is the best formalization of 'good' ever put forth. I feel it can be applied widely in comparing and contrasting actions to make decisions which will benefit everyone. It is exactly what we want in AGI/ ASI, and certainly would be neat if applied to the personal or government level. It has issues (as do all proposed control problem solutions) with the ambiguity of defining exactly who/what should be included in the concept of 'individual' as well as its computability. Obviously any objective function will have to harness heuristics and impose limits in order to process such a vast problem, and with those shortcuts mistakes will be made. i think fundamentally we are stuck with uncertainty. but i believe that is ok, man has made no shortage of mistakes. but as long as we attempt to do the best we can, we make positive steps towards making things better.

Wow this video was awesome. Captured a lot of what I've been thinking. Ken Stannley is the GOAT

By far the best podcasts i have ever seen. Keep up the good work guys

I see a strong relationship between the idea of unplanned greatness and Nassim Taleb's views! Especially on Anti-Fragile and Black Swans.

Bro I feel like I’ve found such a hidden gem of a podcast before it’s gotten big y’all are seriously making such sick content!!