This blog post explores the impact of artificial intelligence technologies like AlphaGo on humanity’s future and the potential for them to lead to the end of the human race.
Homo antecessor, Homo floresiensis, Homo ergaster, Homo rudolfensis. What do these four words have in common? At first glance, they resemble spells wizards might recite in a Harry Potter novel. Unfortunately, these words are not magic incantations but terms from biology referring to humans that existed in the past. So, what term refers to modern humans in 2025? Most people have likely encountered this word through TV programs, the internet, or books. It is Homo sapiens.
Homo sapiens is Latin for ‘wise man’. Homo sapiens are the humans who developed Paleolithic culture starting around 40,000 to 50,000 years ago. Characterized by bipedalism and a larger brain capacity compared to other human species, they exhibit behavioral patterns similar to the people we see around us today. The current human species, ‘Homo sapiens’, has adapted well to life on Earth. Most people believe that unless a large-scale natural disaster occurs, like the extinction of the dinosaurs, humanity will not become extinct for many centuries.
However, Yuval Noah Harari, author of ‘Sapiens,’ holds a slightly different view. According to Harari’s ‘Sapiens,’ Homo sapiens will soon face its end. The end of Homo sapiens signifies the end of modern humans. How exactly will modern humans meet their end? And what does this ‘end’ mean? Does it mean vanishing from Earth, or evolving into a new species? Yuval Noah Harari argues that humans are gradually transcending their inherent biological characteristics, moving closer to the realm of the divine. In this process, the various traits originally possessed by Homo sapiens are disappearing, and the loss of these defining characteristics is what constitutes the end.
While he proposed many reasons for this end, we will focus specifically on cyborg engineering. Before diving in, let’s understand what a cyborg is. What exactly is a cyborg? The book describes it as “an entity partially composed of biological and non-biological elements.” This “composition” does not mean simply assembling blocks made of biological and non-biological materials, like Lego toys, to create a single entity. Consider humans composed of biological blocks. If one biological block fails or malfunctions, it can be replaced with a mechanical block. The being created through this process is called a cyborg.
The prediction that cyborgs will cause humans to vanish from Earth is already familiar to existing ‘Homo sapiens’. Countless films, books, and TV programs on Earth depict fierce competition and war between cyborgs and humans. James Cameron’s ‘Terminator’ series, for instance, effectively portrays through film the creation of machine-based humans and these machines’ subsequent attempt to eliminate humanity and seize Earth. However, the apocalypse caused by cyborgs discussed in the book differs slightly from the commonly known cinematic narratives.
Yuval Noah Harari believes that if humans replace vital organs like the brain with machines, they cease to be true Homo sapiens. He views this state as the end of Homo sapiens, since most of the Homo sapiens genes would have disappeared. Let’s assume that ‘a pure human, not replaced by any machine, is 100 percent filled with Homo sapiens genes’. But consider a case where machines comprise more than 50 percent of a human, or even more. If, extremely, over 90 percent of my body is made of machines, am I a machine? Or am I still human? Or if only the brain is replaced by a machine, can it still be considered a true Homo sapiens, since it no longer perceives or thinks with a human brain? Regarding these two questions, one could at least answer that a person mixed with machinery is difficult to view as a ‘perfect’ Homo sapiens.
If we become ‘less’ Homo sapiens by 1 percent every 100 years, simple math shows that humanity 10,000 years from now will no longer possess the form of Homo sapiens. Ultimately, Homo sapiens will face extinction.
This raises another question: Is it truly possible for machines to replace every aspect of humanity? Machines have developed alongside human history. As various engineering fields advance, they can now replicate diverse organ systems, and soon they will be able to replicate all organs. Unlike other organs, the brain remains largely unknown, making its replication significantly difficult. Thus, the ultimate goal for engineers is to replicate the brain. Consider the recent historic showdown between AlphaGo and Lee Sedol in Go. It was a clash between artificial intelligence using deep learning and the human brain. While AlphaGo’s 3-1 victory marked a defeat for humanity, from the perspective of cyborg development, it was also welcome news suggesting machines could soon replace the human brain.
Beyond this, artificial retinas and cochlear implants are emerging to replace damaged or non-functional organs in people with disabilities. Technological progress is enabling us to overcome human limitations through machines. In essence, a society where humans and machines collaborate is forming. Avoiding this trend is impossible. Ultimately, humanity cannot help but be influenced by machines. Since technological advancement can replace most human functions, Yuval Noah Harari’s hypothesis about the end of Homo sapiens gains further traction. Artificial intelligence technologies like AlphaGo will significantly contribute to creating cyborgs, and Homo sapiens will eventually face extinction.
Looking at the history of technological advancement, humanity has always evolved alongside technology. By using fire, creating tools, and developing language, humanity began to dominate nature. Now, we have reached the stage of using technology to transcend our biological limitations. Humanity will not simply become appendages to machines but will embrace a new evolution through coexistence with them.
Now we can answer the question posed in the title. Could AlphaGo lead to the extinction of humanity? Yes. AlphaGo will lead ‘Homo sapiens’ to its end. But this will not be mere extinction; it will signify evolution into a new form of existence. We may lose the characteristics of Homo sapiens, but in that process, we will discover new possibilities. Merging with technology will present us with a new path, and that path will open a future beyond our imagination.
