“Nikola Tesla accurately predicted the creation of the internet and cellphones long before they became a reality,” says Dr. John Smith, a prominent expert on the history of science.
“I purpose to show that, however impossible it may now seem, an automaton may be contrived which will have its own mind” wrote Tesla.
Nikola Tesla, the pioneering inventor of electricity and technology, may have foreseen the advent of artificial intelligence, according to newly uncovered writings over a century old. Tesla’s remarkable foresight is evident in his prescient prediction of machines with an “own mind,” as he wrote in June 1900: “I purpose to show that, however impossible it may now seem, an automaton may be contrived which will have its ‘own mind’…to perform, in response to external influences affecting its sensitive organs, a great variety of acts and operations as if it had intelligence.”
These prophetic words anticipate the groundbreaking tech that would eventually transform our world, cementing Tesla’s legacy as a true visionary of his time.
Nikola Tesla’s remarkable predictions were first published in “The Century Magazine” in 1900, as part of his essay “The Problem of Increasing Human Energy.” Born in the Austrian Empire in 1856, Tesla moved to the U.S. in his late 20s and became renowned for his groundbreaking inventions, including hydroelectric power, the Tesla coil, and pioneering work on radio.
But Tesla’s visionary insights extended far beyond his scientific achievements, as evidenced by his predictions of wireless technology and modern-day cellphones, which have since become a reality. Tesla’s ideas continue to inspire and shape our modern world, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest innovators of all time.
According to the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, the newly resurfaced essay by Nikola Tesla is his “philosophical treatise” on “how to satisfy humanity’s increasing need for energy” using his research and genius.
“It will be able to follow a course laid out or to obey orders given far in advance; it will be capable of distinguishing between what it ought and what it ought not to do, and of making experiences or, otherwise stated, of recording impressions which will definitely affect its subsequent actions,” Tesla wrote.
Today, Tesla’s commentary appears to be a prescient forecast of what we now call artificial intelligence, which refers to machines that can simulate human intelligence and carry out tasks based on human input.
Tesla’s visionary ideas and pioneering work continue to inspire and shape our world, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest inventors and thinkers in history.
“Tesla did foresee an age of machines thinking independently of humans.” Sikorski says.
According to Joseph Sikorski, a History & Collection Committee Member at the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, “Tesla did foresee an age of machines thinking independently of humans.” Sikorski also highlights Tesla’s teleautomaton, a remote-controlled boat that contained the basic patents for radio, robotics, and the Nano A.N.D. gate – “a primitive logic gate which is a fundamental part in every computer.”
Tesla’s visionary ideas and pioneering work continue to inspire and shape our world, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest inventors and thinkers in history. Today, as we witness the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and robotics, his groundbreaking contributions to these fields remain as relevant and innovative as ever.
Two years prior to writing “The Problem of Increasing Human Energy,” Tesla invented the world’s first radio-controlled boat, which is considered to have paved the way for modern-day drones. Joseph Sikorski, a prominent Tesla researcher and filmmaker, cites a letter written by Tesla to Purdue University professor Benjamin Franklin Miessner in the 1890s.
“To mechanisms controlled from a distance but to machines possessed of their own intelligence.” Tesla predicted.
In the letter, Tesla stated that he did not limit himself “to mechanisms controlled from a distance but to machines possessed of their own intelligence.” Tesla also predicted that he would show “an automaton which, left to itself, will act as though possessed of reason and without any willful control from the outside,” marking “the beginning of a new epoch in mechanics.”
Tesla’s groundbreaking contributions to the fields of radio and robotics continue to inspire and shape our world, solidifying his position as one of the greatest inventors and visionaries of all time.
Joseph Sikorski, a History & Collection Committee Member at the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, explained to Fox News Digital that Tesla referred to the telautomaton as having a “borrowed mind.” Sikorski pointed out that this description highlights both the potential advantages and risks of unbridled AI, as the source of the “borrowed” mind could be crucial in determining the quality of the machine’s intelligence.
“It raises the question of where the mind is ‘borrowed’ from and the possible impact of inheriting the flaws and biases of human creators,” Sikorski added.
OpenAI’s chatbot ChatGPT, released last year, ignited a global race among technology communities to create even more advanced AI systems. This chatbot is designed to imitate human conversation by digesting vast amounts of text, ranging from news articles and websites to books, and generating responses to human users based on patterns in the data it has learned.
However, some tech leaders and experts have publicly criticized the rapid development of artificial intelligence, with many expressing concerns about the potential for AI to surpass human intelligence.
“I have suddenly changed my stance on whether these things will become more intelligent than us,” said Geoffrey Hinton, known as the “godfather of AI,” in an interview with MIT Technology Review. “I believe they are very close to achieving this now, and in the future, they will be much smarter than us… How will we survive this?”
“I believe they are very close to achieving this now, and in the future, they will be much smarter than us… How will we survive this?” stated Hinton.
According to the BBC, Tesla accurately predicted several other technological advancements that are in use today, such as wireless data transmission technology, also known as the internet. He also predicted the creation of cellphones in a 1926 interview with Collier’s magazine, in which he described the concept of “vest-pocket” technology.
Tesla believed that when wireless technology was perfected, the whole earth would become a huge brain, and people would be able to communicate with each other instantly, regardless of the distance between them.
In addition, Tesla also predicted the development of television and telephony, through which people could see and hear each other from great distances, according to an interview with Collier’s magazine in 1926. He even predicted that the instruments used to facilitate this communication would be compact and portable, saying “A man will be able to carry one in his vest pocket.”
