Indeed. It would be interesting to study how he became one of the go-to guys for hot takes on any new technology, considering that he hasn't developed any new technology in the last 40 years or so.
Only Cory Doctorow, perhaps, matches him when it comes to famous for being famous. Sorry, an awesome set of dreads doesn't make you a "guru".
I'm not sure any of the fundamentals have changed in 40 years, so being able to speak as an authority isn't really dependent on knowing React or that Java 19 got whatever new syntax.
That attitude is why ageism is so prevalent in engineering.
Maybe read a few of his books before writing someone off because you think they're out-dated.
> Got a critique about the topic at hand, which is what he's said about AI
Sure. He has no special expertise in AI, and his opinion on the subject is of no more value than that of any other random person working in the field.
> do you just have cheap, physical appearance potshots?
If you think his physical appearance doesn't have a lot to do with why his opinion is sought after by general media sources, well... you're wrong. A major reason they go to him is because he makes an impressive-looking photograph to go along with the article.
>He has no special expertise in AI, and his opinion on the subject is of no more value than that of any other random person working in the field.
... oh, you meant "no" rather than "sure". I asked for "a critique about ... what he's said about AI", but you completely ignored that and opted to simply dismiss all of it outright. It turns out that, in point of fact...
>If you think his physical appearance doesn't have a lot to do with why his opinion is sought after by general media sources, well... you're wrong. A major reason they go to him is because he makes an impressive-looking photograph to go along with the article.
... you're still hung up on his physical appearance.
No, I meant "sure". Yes, he has an opinion. No, that opinion isn't of any more value than that of anyone else who works in technology, because he has no expertise in AI. His hot take isn't more worthy of critique that some Twitter rando's hot take. It's up to him to provide evidence that his opinion has some special value. I haven't seen any such evidence (other than the "famous for being famous" thing). Do you have any?
> you're still hung up on his physical appearance.
Oh, I'm pretty sure it's not me who's overly impressed by his physical appearance.
First, I have to admit that I was negatively biased by his appearance. I have a hard time believing anything that some guy who looks like he smokes metric tons of weed and dorks around on his guitar all day has to say.
That being said, the tech world has a bad habit of letting "visionaries" rest on their laurels. He'd have a lot more credence if he was actively developing AI and had more than gut feel to contribute.
Indeed. It would be interesting to study how he became one of the go-to guys for hot takes on any new technology, considering that he hasn't developed any new technology in the last 40 years or so.
Only Cory Doctorow, perhaps, matches him when it comes to famous for being famous. Sorry, an awesome set of dreads doesn't make you a "guru".