I find this experiment inspiring, but probably not for the reasons intended by the experimenters. To let loose a swarm of agents in a sandbox game with the vague goal of "build a thriving civilization", and then to observe them flounder in risk averse strategies is precisely what separates us from them. There is no risk-taking, no irrational spark, no neurodivergent "because it's there" impulse that led us out of the caves in the first place. Perhaps it's impossible for a fully rational intelligence to build a civilization, as analysis-paralysis would exponentially dominate all decision-making. It's only happened because of happy accidents, ultimately stemming from what would in the moment be thought of as very bad ideas.
I am equally intrigued by how to augment Minecraft game play using agents as, essentially, team members to command. Given the ability to communicate with agents who are autonomous enough to play the game well enough, could they assist a human player to achieve very ambitious goals? Spawn in with 50 "friends", and instead of letting them wander aimlessly, give them some concrete tasks that a human player knows to be valuable steps on the tech tree. Build a cobblestone generator, an iron farm, lock in a Mending librarian, find a stronghold, loot the End, a sugar cane farm, gunpowder for rockets, now everyone has Elytra, on to raid farms, a perimeter, slime farm, witch farm, etc.
We don't give agents a rack of servers and an objective "build the next unicorn", but we direct them to solve tasks we as humans know are valuable in our own domains. Same story here and I am seriously daydreaming about a server in which I've got 50 full Netherite agents at my command ready to assist me in whatever grand build I have in mind. "Ada, I need 20 shulkers of black concrete. Bram, bring me 14 stacks of blaze rods. Cleo, we need more blue dye, find the optimal gradient in the flower forest and build a shifting floor farm for cornflowers..."
I am equally intrigued by how to augment Minecraft game play using agents as, essentially, team members to command. Given the ability to communicate with agents who are autonomous enough to play the game well enough, could they assist a human player to achieve very ambitious goals? Spawn in with 50 "friends", and instead of letting them wander aimlessly, give them some concrete tasks that a human player knows to be valuable steps on the tech tree. Build a cobblestone generator, an iron farm, lock in a Mending librarian, find a stronghold, loot the End, a sugar cane farm, gunpowder for rockets, now everyone has Elytra, on to raid farms, a perimeter, slime farm, witch farm, etc.
We don't give agents a rack of servers and an objective "build the next unicorn", but we direct them to solve tasks we as humans know are valuable in our own domains. Same story here and I am seriously daydreaming about a server in which I've got 50 full Netherite agents at my command ready to assist me in whatever grand build I have in mind. "Ada, I need 20 shulkers of black concrete. Bram, bring me 14 stacks of blaze rods. Cleo, we need more blue dye, find the optimal gradient in the flower forest and build a shifting floor farm for cornflowers..."