AI with Alien Content and Alien Metasemantics

AI systems like AlphaGo may develop internal representations of concepts that humans cannot fully express or understand in language. The paper argues that sophisticated AI systems likely entertain "alien content"—meanings that exist in the AI's processing but lack human linguistic equivalents, such as how AlphaGo evaluates board positions in ways that don't map onto human strategic concepts.

The way AI systems develop meaning is fundamentally different from how humans acquire it, which has implications for how we interpret their decision-making. Because AI content emerges through different processes than human cognition (different "etiology"), we cannot simply assume that attributing human-like thoughts to AI systems accurately captures what they actually represent internally.

Communication barriers between humans and AI systems with alien content could complicate efforts to make AI more interpretable and trustworthy. If AI systems express concepts humans cannot articulate, this creates a potential gap in explainable AI (XAI) efforts—we may struggle to translate what an AI system "understands" into human-understandable explanations, even if we try to make the system more transparent.

Understanding alien AI content may be relevant to assessing existential risks from advanced AI systems. The paper suggests that clarity about whether and how AI systems develop meanings beyond human comprehension could inform discussions about AI alignment and safety, since we may not fully grasp what advanced systems are "thinking" or optimizing for.