From AI-made jokes to Harry Potter fashion videos, AI can be used to make funny stuff. But can it be as funny as a human? And if it can, does it present a danger to comedy writers in the future? That’s something performers have been looking at in this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, running from Aug 4 to 28.

从人工智能创作的笑话到《哈利·波特》时尚视频，人工智能已经可用于制作很多有趣的东西。但是，它能像人类一样幽默吗？如果可以，它是否会对未来的喜剧编剧构成威胁？这是今年8月4日至28日举行的爱丁堡边缘艺术节上表演者们关注的问题。
 

Anyone can put on a show at the Fringe, and this year even robots were getting in on the act. One of Fringe’s big shows even used a small robot to come up with jokes from audience suggestions, which were then performed by humans. The results could be very funny, but sometimes they weren’t funny at all. That was part of the point, explained Piotr Mirowski, the show’s co-maker.

艺术节上每个人都可以表演节目。今年，机器人也加入了表演行列。艺术节的一场大型演出甚至使用了一个小型机器人，根据观众的建议编喜剧段子，然后由人表演。这些笑话有的非常有趣，但有的一点也不好笑。该演出节目的联合制作人皮奥特·米洛斯基解释说，这也是该节目的目的之一。
 

“We do not use humans to ‘show off’ AI; instead, we use AI ‘to show’ its limitations, to showcase human creativity on the stage,” said Mirowski, according to the Guardian.

据《卫报》报道，米洛斯基说：“我们并不通过人类来‘展现’人工智能的强大；相反，我们利用人工智能自身‘展现’其局限性，从而显示出人类的舞台创造力。”
 

Comedian Pierre Novellie said that it will take a long time for AI to get good at creating comedy. “Comedy is the last thing that AI is going to get near,” Pierre told Sky News. “Even normal human comedians struggle to ‘tune’ their jokes ‘for’ the right crowd at the right time, every time. But that’s what’s interesting about stand-up and fun.”

喜剧演员皮埃尔·诺维利（Pierre Novellie）说，人工智能要想在喜剧创作方面有所成就，仍然任重道远。皮埃尔告诉《天空新闻》：“喜剧是人工智能最不可能接近的领域。即使是普通的人类喜剧演员，也很难每次都在正确的时间为正确的观众讲出‘合适’他们的笑话。但这正是单口喜剧的魅力。”
 

But one performer at the Fringe said he’s using AI to make jokes for him because he’s out of ideas. Comedian Peter Bazely’s show has him playing a supporting role to “an entirely computer-generated comedian” called AI Jesus. The Fringe review website, Chortle, talked about today’s AI concerns: “In a world where artists are worried that AI could end up doing their jobs for them, Bazely is said to be praying this one will do exactly that.”

但艺术节上的一位表演者说，他之所以用人工智能为自己创作笑话，是因为他已经想法枯竭了。在喜剧演员彼得·巴兹利（Peter Bazely）的表演中，他给“完全由电脑生成的”喜剧演员AI Jesus当配角。艺术节评论网站Chortle谈到了当今人类对人工智能的担忧：“艺术家们总是担心自己最终被人工智能取代，据说巴兹利（Bazely）希望人工智能真正能做到这一点”。
 

The reasons for companies wanting to use AI are certainly understandable, but the dangers they present to many people’s jobs are becoming more and more real, and that’s not very funny.

公司希望使用人工智能的原因当然可以理解，但人工智能给许多人的工作造成的威胁却越来越真实，这并不是一个轻松的话题。
 

From concerns in schools and colleges about students using ChatGPT for their work, to writers and actors worrying that AI could be used to replace them, fears about the dangers of AI are a hot topic in the world.

从学校担心学生使用ChatGPT完成作业，到作家和演员担心可能被人工智能取代，人们对人工智能的担忧成为全球热门话题。
 

Back in March of this year, a letter calling for a six-month stop on advanced AI development was signed by over 1,000 people working with AI technologies including Elon Musk and other well-known tech leaders, reported The New York Times. Then, in May, leaders in the AI industry signed a document from the Center for AI Safety warning that AI could present an extinction-level danger and “should be a global priority alongside ... pandemics and nuclear war.”

据《纽约时报》报道，早在今年3月，包括埃隆·马斯克（Elon Musk）和其他知名科技领袖在内的1000多名人工智能技术从业者签署了一封信，呼吁将先进人工智能开发工作暂停6个月。随后，5月份，人工智能行业的巨头们签署了一份来自人工智能安全中心的文件，警告说人工智能可能会带来灭绝级的危险，“应该与大流行病和核战争一起成为全球优先事项”。

以上文章内容选自 《21世纪英文报》高二916期