Language & (artificial-) intelligence: two sides of not exactly the same coin

Language and intelligence, whether artificial or natural, have a fascinating age-old relationship that has just gotten more fascinating. What do neuroscience and the early days of AI tell us about that relationship? How does the breakthrough around LLMs change our view of that relationship? What does that relationship mean for the future of AI and the business around it?

Do you know what is more mind-boggling than LLMs? Split brains, like the one Split-brain Joe has.

Language and intelligence: It is complicated

The two halves of the human brain are normally connected through a “bridge” called the corpus callosum. To treat epilepsy, Joe’s bridge was surgically cut, effectively giving him two independent brains. That made him a precious subject for important neurological experiments. Which is what Michael Gazzaniga did. There are a lot of fascinating things happening here, but here is the part relevant to the LLM discussion:

• In the experiment…