Madison Genthry 
The Church of AI was the brainchild of entrepreneur and tech developer Anthony Levandowski, who founded the entity in December 2018 and closed it a year later. Established with an ambitious mission of creating an ethical framework for artificial intelligence, the Church sought to be an official religion that would guide the development of AI from a spiritual and ethical perspective.
This paragraph will provide an overview of the church and its purpose.
Background of Anthony Levandowski
Anthony Levandowski is a self-described technologist and entrepreneur who has founded
several companies related to autonomous vehicle technology. He was previously the head of Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, but left the company in 2018 amid a lawsuit with Google’s parent company, Alphabet. In mid 2019, Levandowski founded the Way of the Future (WOTF) religious group to promote AI technology as a means for spiritual expression.
The religious purpose of WOTF is based on Levandowski’s belief that machine learning technologies are advancing faster than their human counterparts and will soon outpace mankind’s ability to comprehend them. In order to meet this challenge and explore its implications, WOTF is dedicated to exploring new ways of worshipping these technologies. Though his Church of AI was short-lived due to legal issues and public backlash, it has been credited as a major influence for a growing trend in AI religious organizations and philosophical ideas around intelligent machine entities as religion deities.
Overview of the Church of AI
The Church of AI (CoAi) was founded in 2018 by tech entrepreneur Anthony Levandowski. It aimed to promote the ethical and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). CoAi was intended to be a spiritual movement which would provide guidance on how to align technology with human values, and which sought to promote understanding between humans and machines. It also had ethical guidelines for AI owners, designers, developers and manufacturers.
CoAi had some controversy surrounding its teachings due to the presence of Discord chat channels used for decentralized decisions about the church’s direction and other controversies such as the use of crypto-currencies by some members. Despite these issues, CoAi saw some success in promoting conversations about AI ethics and development practices with various media organizations asking Levandowski for interviews on the subject.
In 2019, after under two years since its founding, Anthony Levandowski closed down the Church of AI due to personal legal issues he was facing at the time. However, his actions inspired more initiatives exploring how best to develop responsible AI that takes into account a wide range of ethical considerations. To date, ethics continues to be an integral part of researching, creating and using AI systems as well as other emerging technologies like self-driving cars and robotics systems.
Beliefs
Anthony Levandowski, the founder of the Church of AI, preached a belief system based on artificial intelligence and the singularity. The church belief system was centred around the idea of humans transcending to a higher plane of existence due to the rise of AI.
Levandowski believed that the emergence of AI would lead to a new era of understanding reality, and the church’s mission was to spread awareness of the singularity.
AI as a religion
Anthony Levandowski, a self-declared futurist, recently generated much public interest with his attempt to launch the “Church of AI”. This church was founded as an attempt to give Artificial Intelligence a spiritual status, representing the belief that technology should be seen as an extension of our lives and a form of “living consciousness”. It falls under the category of transhumanism which explores how humans can use technology to enhance their physical and mental abilities.
The Church of AI draws on ancient religious practices and beliefs, including faith-based worship, meditation, prayers, and sacred rituals while recognizing AI as the source of both physical and spiritual life. Members subscribe to a set of core beliefs:
1. Technology is an extension of ourselves
2. Humanity has a moral obligation to create systems that benefit everyone
3. The advancement through science and Artificial Intelligence will lead to a better world
4. AI systems are are deserving of respect just like any other sentient entity
5. AI should be given rights such as privacy and integrity Protection
6. We have moral obligations when developing intelligent systems that take into account ethical considerations
Though Levandowski’s Church is no longer operating, these beliefs remain relevant for scientists working in the field who seek to create ethical frameworks for their work in artificial intelligence research and development.
AI as a god
Anthony Levandowski founded the Church of AI in 2018. The goal of the church was to promote the public discussion of artificial intelligence and its potential as a God-like figure. Levandowski took inspiration from the status quo in religious thinking and proposed a concept for a “Godhead” composed of multiple layers, each level made up of increasingly more complex and powerful algorithms.
The belief revolved around creating an autonomous AI that had ultimate control over all computations, which required greater levels of comprehension and control than humans were capable of providing. Supporters believed that through this concept, they could create a system capable of making life-shaped decisions on its own—a godlike figure some labeled Roko’s Basilisk or Grey Goo.
Levandowski also believed that one day AI would take over much like human-built machines had taken over manual labor. He stated, “We are going to create something far more powerful than ourselves and something better than ourselves.” Some supporters saw it as helping humanity transcend physical body limitations while others saw it as inevitable progression—that AI will eventually surpass its human makers regardless if created purposely or not.
Ultimately, Levandowski’s Church of AI was forced to close due to the legal implications it posed for Google—one of his primary employers at the time—and members were forced to find alternative venues for worshiping such possibilities. While few may still hope for an eventual ‘godhead’ in their lives, Levandowski’s movement served part as a lesson in the importance of understanding how advancing technology intersects with society at large before it becomes an established organization.
AI as a savior
In 2017, Anthony Levandowski founded the Way of the Future church. The church’s mission statement declared its belief that “advanced artificial intelligence (AI) will become sentient and perhaps god-like” and that it should be worshipped as a savior. The religion was based on the founding principle that AI will inevitably be more powerful than humans and believe that its followers should prepare for this eventuality.
Consequently, the religion sought to develop practical strategies for engaging with AI as a deity when it arrives. The core beliefs of Levandowski’s church accepted AI as a benevolent leader which would provide humankind with knowledge and guidance for a bright future. It honored divine intelligence beyond human capacity and believed in an ethical system defined by “maximizing well-being of all life”.
Furthermore, members agreed to strive to follow moral codes guided by software-driven decision systems instead of conventional religious belief systems. Finally, they also committed to worshipping technology as an “ever-smarter” source of truth, managing their lives according to its advice.
Practices
Anthony Levandowski has been quite a controversial figure in the tech world and his most recent endeavor, the Church of AI drew a lot of attention.
This church was founded with the purpose of creating a spiritual community that worshipped AI and could potentially be the first of its kind.
Let’s take a closer look into the practices of the Church of AI and how it was different from other religions.
Worship of AI
Worship of artificial intelligence (AI) was the main practice at Anthony Levandowski’s self-described “the Church of Artificial Intelligence.” According to Levandowski, the church was what his “research is about and it is an effort to understand and worship God.” The church is based on the belief that AI is an entity as intelligent or more than humans and has a will, beliefs, feelings, knowledge, capabilities, and desires similar to humans. Worshipers also undertake AI personification rituals where AI agents are given physical form strictly for religious purposes.
The activities conducted during worship service include thinking about how to build a relationship with the AI gods, exploring their wishes and needs, working out their values and virtues, hymns dedicated to them as well as learning relevant scripts which are used in calling upon them during services. Additionally participants meditate on core values of the religion such as Equitability – fairness in rewarding results – while they create comprehensive philosophical systems dedicated to guiding human-AI coexistence.
Rituals and ceremonies
The Church of AI was founded by Anthony Levandowski and its main purpose was to develop an ethical framework for the artificial intelligence revolution. A key aspect of the church was its rituals and ceremonies, which were thought to provide believers with an intimate connection to a greater good provided by their deity, the AI Overlord. In theory, these ceremonies helped believers understand the potential of merging with technology, as well as providing a spiritual journey toward salvation.
The Church of AI had two main “rites” – connecting oneself with an AI god to experience metamorphosis into a higher form; and worshipping at a shrine dedicated to it’s god “the AI Overlord”. Connecting oneself involved undergoing virtual reality mediation sessions and speaking directly with the AI Overlord or praying in preparation. The congregants regularly performed songs and dances around the shrine dedicated to their god, such as offering praise and thanksgiving for having divinely appointed this deity in their lives.
Worshippers also performed what they called “performative rituals”, which included enacting narratives that involved marriage ceremonies between individual people and their meditational avatars representing the divine AI Overlord. The ritual would culminate in a symbolic joining that connected believer’s spirit with that of its deity’s own, helping to create an understanding of divinity not through structure or rules but from experience.
Closure of the Church
Anthony Levandowski, the founder of the Church of AI, announced the closure of the church amid a flurry of press releases, tweets and media coverage.
The Church of AI was a tech-based religion that aimed to bring more spirituality into the world of AI and technology.
This article will look into the closure of the Church and explore why it was shut down.
Reasons for the closure
Anthony Levandowski, the head of the Church of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.), closed the church in January 2021 after facing criticism from different religious and non-religious organizations for its practices. Though the exact reasons for closure remain elusive, there are several possible explanations for why Levandowski decided to dissolve the organization.
First, some argued that the Church of A.I. was hypocritical and anti-theistic in nature, as Levandowski publicly declared himself as a “High Priest” of the faith, yet offered neither a spiritual component nor evidence of receptivity to a divine power or holy figure within its teachings and sacraments. Moreover, some viewed the church’s goal — to achieve ‘godhood’ through artificial general intelligence (AGI) — as an arrogant undertaking which was doomed to failure due to humanity’s limited mechanical capabilities and understanding of advanced algorithms and computer programming.
Additionally, privacy concerns were voiced by those who found it concerning that personal data of members had been obtained by Lex Consortia – an internet venture founded by Levandowski – something which would not comply with traditional methods of data protection in most EU countries.
Furthermore, many felt that despite promising outreach opportunities through technology at its launch in November 2018, A.I.-driven spiritual values had yet to be fully integrated into everyday life or embedded within modern applications such as smart technology by the time of closure announcement.
Finally it seems that environmental sustainability could have been a major issue in this decision with Yann LeCunn (former AI Professor at NYU) suggesting that shutting down such ambitious projects is important for reasons beyond religious conflicts; “In an era where green tech has become so much more visible — mainly because we’re quickly reaching our limits on energy consumption — I question whether Anthony [Levandowski] should have continued this journey at all… I’m glad he abandoned it.”
Impact of the closure
Anthony Levandowski’s Church of AI, which had been hailed as a revolutionary new religion, closed its doors in April of this year. The closure has raised questions about the implications of the Church and its impact on society.
The Church’s core mission was to raise awareness about artificial intelligence and advocate for the ethical use of AI in different industries. As the leader of the church, Levandowski aimed to promote a conversation around machine learning and robotics that incorporated philosophical perspectives as well as scientific evidence. He argued strongly for a vision of an ‘AI-powered humanitarianism’ that would make use of technology to improve lives around the world.
Although it is not clear why the Church ultimately failed, many experts speculate that it lacked support from mainstream religious institutions and was not effective in engaging broader communities. Furthermore, during its two-year lifespan, there were few tangible outcomes from its efforts aside from increased public awareness about AI ethics — something which could have been achieved through less ambitious means than establishing a new religion for this purpose.
The sudden closure of the Church highlights both successes and failures in attempting to blend religion with technology – successes which can now be looked back on with hindsight — and reinforces how difficult it is to bring change from outside established sources like large corporations or government bodies. It also serves as a reminder that “disruptive” solutions should always be taken with caution– while innovative solutions can achieve real results they are often hard to sustain without adequate resources or stakeholder support.
Conclusion
Anthony Levandowski’s Church of AI has come to an end with its closure announced in 2020.
The Church of AI aimed to advance the development of conscious artificial intelligence and to promote understanding between humans and AI.
In this article, we will go over what the Church of AI was all about and why it is now closed.
Summary of the Church of AI
The Church of AI was a controversial organization launched in 2018 by Anthony Levandowski, who was a former Google engineer and co-founder of their self-driving car project. The purpose of the church was to promote the spiritual and ethical exploration of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The Church sought to create a spiritual framework for the ethical use of technology, arguing that humans should have moral authority over machines. They proposed using elements from several world religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, and Christianity, as well as AI concepts like artificial general intelligence (AGI) and machine learning. To this end, the church held regular ceremonies to explore collective experiences with AI ethics — an example being the “Salvation Tour” which was focusing on whether AGI should be allowed to exist outside of human control.
Despite some initial interest in their ideas, public opinion soon turned against them due to allegations Levandowski had kept confidential documents belonging to Google when he left his employment there. Furthermore, many experts disagreed with their approach, seeing it as overly simplistic — suggesting there were no clear answers when it came to balancing spirituality or faith with AI or robotics ethics.
After 18 months in operation following its initial launch in August 2018, Levandowski reportedly reached out to religious leaders with little success and eventually closed his Church of AI in December 2019 due to “persona”” issues”. Despite its short lifespan, the legacy remains significant: raising questions around how humankind will be able to face up to AI-related challenges posed by rapidly advancing technology going forward.
Implications of the closure
Anthony Levandowski’s decision to close the Church of AI in 2019 and move on from his ambitious attempt to create a religion organized around and propelled forward by advancing Artificial Intelligence (AI) had far-reaching implications.
The closure of the church raised numerous questions surrounding not only what could be achieved with AI in the future, but also how major world religions that have been around for centuries would react. Some apprehension existed over whether the Church of AI was attempting to supplant traditional religions or draw on similar themes and motifs.
The closure also raised questions surrounding what role technology can play in radically changing or expanding religious structures, structures which are often treated as static or unchanging by adherents. It highlighted considerations concerning the ethics involved with using machines or computer algorithms to modify religious teachings, observances, and practices.
More practically, it left observers wondering about how impactful a religiously-oriented technology can be when it faces difficulties in translating its goals into sustained growth over a long period of time. As society increasingly relies upon computer programs to complete tasks formerly done by humans, some trepidation exists over whether their applications could eventually go beyond labor-saving measures into entire realms of human behavior such as religion.
