Goal Misgeneralization: The Great Leap Forward in China (1958-1962). The goal was rapid industrialization and collectivization, but it was misgeneralized into extreme policies like backyard furnaces and grain requisitions, which led to catastrophic human and economic losses.
Deceptive Alignment: The Trojan Horse in ancient mythology. The Greeks deceived the Trojans into thinking the horse was a gift, leading to the fall of Troy.
Deceptive Alignment 2: Ponzi schemes. Madoff aligned his apparent goals of high returns with investors’ financial objectives, only to later reveal a fraudulent scheme that led to catastrophic financial loss for many.
Specification Gaming: “Robber barons” in the 19th-century U.S., exploiting lax regulations to create monopolies.
Specification Gaming 2: The subprime mortgage crisis of 2008. Financial institutions exploited poorly specified risk-assessment models and regulations, leading to a global financial crisis.
Power-Seeking: The rise of totalitarian regimes like Nazi Germany. The initial goal of national rejuvenation was perverted into a catastrophic power-seeking endeavor that led to millions of deaths and global conflict.
Self-Preservation: The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962). Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union were seeking to preserve their national security, nearly leading to nuclear war.
Self-Improvement: The arms race during the Cold War. Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union sought to improve their military capabilities, leading to dangerous levels of nuclear proliferation.
Some non-AI answers:
Goal Misgeneralization: The Great Leap Forward in China (1958-1962). The goal was rapid industrialization and collectivization, but it was misgeneralized into extreme policies like backyard furnaces and grain requisitions, which led to catastrophic human and economic losses.
Deceptive Alignment: The Trojan Horse in ancient mythology. The Greeks deceived the Trojans into thinking the horse was a gift, leading to the fall of Troy.
Deceptive Alignment 2: Ponzi schemes. Madoff aligned his apparent goals of high returns with investors’ financial objectives, only to later reveal a fraudulent scheme that led to catastrophic financial loss for many.
Specification Gaming: “Robber barons” in the 19th-century U.S., exploiting lax regulations to create monopolies.
Specification Gaming 2: The subprime mortgage crisis of 2008. Financial institutions exploited poorly specified risk-assessment models and regulations, leading to a global financial crisis.
Power-Seeking: The rise of totalitarian regimes like Nazi Germany. The initial goal of national rejuvenation was perverted into a catastrophic power-seeking endeavor that led to millions of deaths and global conflict.
Self-Preservation: The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962). Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union were seeking to preserve their national security, nearly leading to nuclear war.
Self-Improvement: The arms race during the Cold War. Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union sought to improve their military capabilities, leading to dangerous levels of nuclear proliferation.