The capacity for subjective experience, or sentience, is a defining feature of consciousness. An organism is considered sentient if “there is something it is like to be that organism.” 1 In his 2024 ...

Tom has a Master's degree in Journalism. His editorial work covers anything from archaeology and the environment to technology and culture. Tom has a Master's degree in Journalism. His editorial work ...

If you aren’t yet worried about the multitude of ways you inadvertently inflict suffering onto other living creatures, you will be after reading The Edge of Sentience by Jonathan Birch. And for good ...

Can artificial intelligence (AI) feel distress? Do lobsters suffer in a pot as it reaches a boil? Can a 12-week-old fetus feel pain? Ignore these questions and we potentially sanction a quiet, ...

Let's consider a hypothetical. The rapid advancement of large language models (LLMs) has ignited a fascinating debate about the nature of intelligence, consciousness, and the potential for machines to ...