The unbearable hardness of inferring being: Comment on "preliminaries to artificial consciousness" by Evers et al.
Physics of life reviews March 1, 2026 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2025.12.004 via PubMed
Summary
A commentary argues that a proposed multidimensional heuristic for artificial consciousness research cannot determine whether a machine could genuinely have phenomenal experience. Behavioral-cognitive profiles lack a justified link between function and subjective experience. The awareness case study shows that externally specified goals can produce as-if control rather than original intentionality. The heuristic overlooks that substrate similarity to the human brain is currently essential for inferring consciousness. Thus the framework may help build a sophisticated philosophical zombie but cannot tell whether anyone is actually conscious.
Study at a glance
| Design | commentary |
|---|---|
| Key finding | The heuristic cannot adjudicate the nomological possibility of phenomenal consciousness because it lacks a justified principle linking function to experience and overlooks the necessity of substrate similarity for inferring consciousness. |
Abstract
This commentary commends Evers et al.'s multidimensional heuristic for structuring artificial consciousness research while arguing it cannot, as stated, adjudicate the nomological possibility of phenomenal consciousness, which is at stake in current debates. Behavioral-cognitive "profiles" lack a justified principle linking function to experience, and the awareness case study illustrates how externally specified goals can just as well underwrite as-if (pseudo-intentional) control rather than original intentionality. Moreover, the proposed heuristic overlooks that substrate similarity is currently indispensable for justifiably inferring the presence of consciousness beyond the validated case of the adult human brain. Given all this, the framework seems to provide a blueprint for building a more sophisticated philosophical zombie; it does not-and cannot-tell us whether anyone is there.