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Panama Papers Trouble On Icelandic Daily Front Page

Wednesday's front page of Icelandic-language daily Fréttablaðið shows Iceland's embattled Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson being asked questions by journalists in Reykjavik's Althing, the national parliament, as the future of the ruling coalition is uncertain in the wake of the Panama Papers scandal.

Gunnlaugsson had apparently resigned yesterday amid the uproar of the Panama Papers revelations of offshore accounts, but followed that up by saying his decision had nothing to do with the leak, and that actually he was just stepping aside for an unspecified amount of time. The leaked documents revealed that Gunnlaugsson's wife owned an offshore company with substantial claims on Iceland's crashed banks.

According to Fréttablaðið, nearly 70% of Icelandic citizens also want Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs and leader of the Icelandic Independence Party Bjarni Benediktsson to resign.

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Future

AI As God? How Artificial Intelligence Could Spark Religious Devotion

We may be about to see the emergence of a new kind of religion, where flocks worship — literally — at the altar of Artificial Intelligence.

Image of artificial intelligence as an artificial being

Artificial intelligence generated picture of AI as a god

Neil McArthur

The latest generation of AI-powered chatbots, trained on large language models, have left their early users awestruck —and sometimes terrified — by their power. These are the same sublime emotions that lie at the heart of our experience of the divine.

People already seek religious meaning from very diverse sources. There are, for instance, multiple religions that worship extra-terrestrials or their teachings.

As these chatbots come to be used by billions of people, it is inevitable that some of these users will see the AIs as higher beings. We must prepare for the implications.

There are several pathways by which AI religions will emerge. First, some people will come to see AI as a higher power.

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