Can an AI bot convince you that it's sentient?

<p>Google engineer Blake Lemoine brought an unusual concern to his company earlier this month: he feared the AI language program he was working with had gained sentience. Even if he's wrong (and Google certainly thinks he is) -- is the fact that an AI bot can imitate sentience so convincingly reason enough to be worried?</p><p><em>This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: </em><a href="https://thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes</em></a><em>. </em></p><p><strong>Guest: </strong>Tom Whipple, Science Editor, The Times.</p><p><strong>Host:&nbsp;</strong>Luke Jones.</p><p><br></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>