AGI with Carlos Could evolution produce an F-22 Raptor?
Jan 21, 2026
Can evolution really create something as advanced as an F-22 Raptor? The discussion navigates discrete versus continuous problem solving, and how smoothed tasks aid neural networks. Explore the challenges of sparse rewards in learning and the contrasting types of selection processes in biology versus culture. The podcast dives into the role of attention in focused discovery, as well as the implications of hypothetical worlds without genes or selection. Finally, it reflects on how human engineering illustrates convergent design and evolution's limitations in innovation.
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Missing Simple Solutions In Discrete Puzzles
- Carlos recounts playing the puzzle game Baba Is You and repeatedly missing simple solutions until later returns.
- He uses this to illustrate discrete problem spaces where gradients don't indicate progress.
Filters Shape Search Possibility
- Evolution acts as a fixed, constraining filter that enforces viability at every stage.
- Removing or changing filters (attention) lets other search processes explore richer paths.
Constrain Large Search Spaces Intentionally
- When you enlarge a search space, invent intentional constraints to navigate it efficiently.
- Use filters to narrow promising paths rather than exhaustively enumerating all possibilities.
