Game Theory & The Great AI Race
The Great AI Race
With the technological boom and creation of machine-intelligent systems, nations across the globe have unilaterally entered a race: to create the most powerful AI systems for military, economic, and scientific advantage.
Game Theory
Game theory is a very complex concept. I will make an attempt to explain it in brief: game theory is a branch of mathematics that studies strategic interactions between players, or decision-makers. In these scenarios, each player’s outcome not only depends on their choices, but also on the choices of other players. Game theory provides the baseline framework that mathematically and statistically explains human behavior. It can be found in a variety of applications, present in politics, economics, and even everyday life.
Here we will focus specifically on two types of games found in game theory: (1) finite and (2) infinite games. (1) Finite games are games that have a clear beginning, end, and a defined winner and loser. The goal of this game is to be the victor. For example, a chess game, a horse race, and a football game are all examples of finite games. One team wins, another loses (or one horse wins). A (2) infinite game, on the other hand, has no defined end. The goal of this game is to keep playing the game, and prolong it. There is no defined beginning, middle, and end, and the rules can change at any time. There is no ultimate winner.
The Great AI Race is an Infinite Game
It is easy to believe that the Great AI Race will eventually have an ultimate winner and loser (one country will have the most powerful AI before the other, leading to global influence); however, that is not the case because The Great AI Race is not actually a race. If we look at the Cold War, we assume that it has been resolved with a clear victor (although history is perspective) when in reality, it is an infinite game of power, ideals, and resources between nations. On a grand scale, these are all intangible values, but we can delve deeper into this idea in a separate blog at another time.
Let’s divert our attention back to the Great AI Race. Nations and corporations may compete for short-term advantages such as market share, patents, or military applications. In the deeper reality, AI innovation will never end, and each breakthrough will lead to not a final, decisive victory, but to new challenges and responsibilities. Therefore, if we shift our focus, we can treat AI as an infinite game. Rather than dominating our rivals, we can work to sustain progress, ensure safety, and foster collaboration because there is no “winning” in a battle of ideals. Our top priority, with the groundbreaking yet dangerous power of AI, should be used in a way that benefits everyone, rather than only for some. Though it is within our nature to protect what is ours and those we care for, it is also important to remember that we must be altruistic for humanity as a whole.
What does that mean for us?
How we frame this Great AI Race shapes the choices that leaders, researchers, and societies will make. If AI is seen as a finite game, then there will be a priority on speed, accuracy, secrecy, and short-term advantage. This is at the expense of safety and ethical safeguards due to its fast production goal. We risk the creation of unstable systems, biased algorithms, and technologies that are deployed without our full understanding. This will harm us in the future.
However, if we view the Great AI race as an infinite game, then our priority will shift to transparency, collaboration, and building systems that can adapt over decades. We will prioritize the quality of life over a victory. Though this seems idealistic, it is important to remember our values of why we are in this race, and who we are fighting this race for.
