Spontaneous Theory of Mind for Artificial Intelligence

Author:

Nikolos Gurney, David V. Pynadath, Volkan Ustun

Keyword:

Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI), Human-Computer Interaction (cs.HC)

journal:

date:

2024-02-16 00:00:00

Abstract

Existing approaches to Theory of Mind (ToM) in Artificial Intelligence (AI) overemphasize prompted, or cue-based, ToM, which may limit our collective ability to develop Artificial Social Intelligence (ASI). Drawing from research in computer science, cognitive science, and related disciplines, we contrast prompted ToM with what we call spontaneous ToM -- reasoning about others' mental states that is grounded in unintentional, possibly uncontrollable cognitive functions. We argue for a principled approach to studying and developing AI ToM and suggest that a robust, or general, ASI will respond to prompts \textit{and} spontaneously engage in social reasoning.

PDF: Spontaneous Theory of Mind for Artificial Intelligence.pdf