My brother sent me a fascinating video of Chinese robot manufacturing plant last week. It shows inside a factory where machines are capable of assembling each other. The video made me think about how far we've come in the field of Artificial Intelligence or AI. Ever since our infancy we've been told that God created man in His image, and now it seems like we're creating something in our image: machines.

Machines with increasingly advanced artificial intelligence are being created to make our life easier. There's already some areas where AIs surpass us. They're able to tap into and process the Internet, which contains almost limitless information. They can be networked, making communication with each other instantaneous and unambiguous.

Machines made Kasparov lose his mind and his title by successively beating him at chess. As we make AIs and machines more sophisticated, we're going to have to start asking how they fit into our existing ideas of religion. And here's the kicker: how can we do this when they're becoming more humanlike?  Whatever the case, I believe machines will never surpass humans in the eyes of our Lord.

What's this about being humanlike?

I remember watching a TED talk last year about how language transformed humanity. Essentially, the speaker's main argument was that our ability to use language sets us apart from other less intelligent species. If language is the benchmark of intelligence, then surely machines aren't that far away from humans.

The Turing Test for Artificial Intelligence

Right now, the main test to determine the intelligence of AI is something called the Turing Test. The test requires a person to hold a conversation with an unidentified guest. If this guest is a machine and the person cannot distinguish it from a human, then the machine's AI is considered intelligent.

While I was reading about the test, one line stood out: "The Turing test does not directly test whether the computer behaves intelligently - it tests only whether the computer behaves like a human being." These criteria are very telling of our view of AI. We're effectively guiding AI along a human path of development (just in a more powerful way).  Despite the increasing similarity of machines to humans, they simply cannot approach our with relationship with God.

What does being human have to do with God?

With the growth of AI in the last few decades, we're eventually going to have to face a few questions. Perhaps the most important one concerns the role of machines in God's kingdom.

In my view, AI increasingly resembles human behaviour, but it will never replace or stand beside us before the Lord. Machines simply don't enjoy the special relationship that humanity does with God. It's not about resembling humans—it's about being humans. I know this is a vague distinction, but consider the following:

Machines now have access to immense amounts of information. Once more devices and (perhaps even humans) are networked to machines, AI will effectively become an omniscient being. In other words, AI has the capacity of becoming a "pseudo Holy Spirit."

If this "pseudo Holy Spirit" were to exist, there's a good chance people would start worshipping it. Indeed, people are already highly dependent upon technology to live a comfortable life. It's entirely possible, then, for this AI to reach a new state of godhood among a few humans. In this case, another question is hard to ignore: can machines supplant the role of God? My answer is no, because it comes down to interests.

Godhood is a little more than coming from an assembly line.

Machines don't share a spiritual bond with humans. God does.

AI has no obligation to humanity beyond its programming. Readers don't need to look past movies like The Terminator to realize the potentially disastrous consequences of relying on the benevolence of machines. Indeed, machines have already started on a path to self-sufficiency. Processes like lean manufacturing and basic cognitive skills already let machines improve themselves.

This self-sufficiency is precisely what I found so interesting about the video. Once machines reach the point of being able to manufacture and program themselves, humanity has no role in their interests. In fact, we may even prove to be an annoyance and competitor to AI.

The main difference between worshipping an entity like God and a machine exists in reciprocity. Unlike machines, God has a vested interest in humans (y'know, creating them and all). While this interest is a point of contention for those who question the existence of God, all devout believers—regardless of faith—accept the benevolence of God as the foundation of their religion. (This is, of course, assuming your faith centers on an all-powerful entity).

Christians, for instance, see the existence of Jesus as proof of God's eternal love for humanity. They view Jesus' visitation as a testament of God's selflessness to us. Whenever they pray, they expect Him to be listening. On the other hand, machines don't have an attitude of selflessness toward us beyond their programming.

Femputer, from Futurama. A computer worshipped as a god, although her utter disregard for her people becomes evident as soon as new visitors land on the planet.

The notion of false idols is actually pretty relevant here. We worship false idols like machines in the attempt to be independent from God. However, these idols can't even approximate the level of selflessness and benevolence a being like God holds for us. Similarly, our act of creating machines is definitely not selfless. We create machines to fulfil tasks and aren't afraid of disposing of them when they become "obsolete."

This brings us to my final question: Can AI truly provide a solution to our spiritual problems? I'm inclined to say no, because AIs can't enter our private relationship with God. Regardless of how well AIs can improve our material conditions, they can't change the theological nature of the problem. But that doesn't rule out the importance of AI in our quest to better understand God.

For starters, they're capable of giving us more time to devote to our faith. AIs aren't necessarily at conflict with God, but they're also incapable of replacing His unique role in the universe. And while they might not qualify as humans under the eyes of God, that doesn't mean we should treat them in the same way. There may very well be one day when we'll have to start asking how AIs fit into our social institutions of ethics, morality, and law.