The example must violate some assumptions behind the theory, but I’m not sure what.
The theory is typically explained using situations where people produce the things they consume. Like, the “human” would literally eat either that 1 paperclip or those 2 staples and survive… and in the future, he could trade the 2 staples for a paperclip and a half, and enjoy the glorious wealth of paperclip-topia.
Also, in the textbook situations the raw materials cannot be traded or taken away. Humans live on one planet, AIs live on another planet, and they only exchange spaceships full of paperclips and staples.
Thus, the theory would apply if each individual human could survive without the trade (e.g. growing food in their garden) and only participate in the trade voluntarily. But the current situation is such that most people cannot survive in their gardens only; many of them don’t even have gardens. The resources they actually own are their bodies and their labor, plus some savings, and when their labor becomes uncompetitive and the savings are spent on keeping the body alive...
Consider the competitive advantages of horses. Not sufficient to keep their population alive at the historical numbers.
The theory is typically explained using situations where people produce the things they consume. Like, the “human” would literally eat either that 1 paperclip or those 2 staples and survive… and in the future, he could trade the 2 staples for a paperclip and a half, and enjoy the glorious wealth of paperclip-topia.
Also, in the textbook situations the raw materials cannot be traded or taken away. Humans live on one planet, AIs live on another planet, and they only exchange spaceships full of paperclips and staples.
Thus, the theory would apply if each individual human could survive without the trade (e.g. growing food in their garden) and only participate in the trade voluntarily. But the current situation is such that most people cannot survive in their gardens only; many of them don’t even have gardens. The resources they actually own are their bodies and their labor, plus some savings, and when their labor becomes uncompetitive and the savings are spent on keeping the body alive...
Consider the competitive advantages of horses. Not sufficient to keep their population alive at the historical numbers.