Modern Numismatics

Louis Golino has been a collector of American and world coins since childhood and has written about coins since 2009. He writes about modern coins and other numismatic issues for Coin World. He is a founding member of the Modern Coin Forum.

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A new series is being launched by the Mint of Poland on behalf of Niue called "Code of the Future," which deals with cutting-edge advancements in science and technology of recent years and decades such as virtual reality, augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and robotics, among others.

The first coin, which is expected to be released in July, is called "Artificial Intelligence," also referred to as AI, and sports a very unique design as well as a number of special features.

The reverse shows a human head superimposed with the inside of a computer (the motherboard), and a robotic arm that holds the earth in its grasp.  The background is an endless series of computer codes, i.e., 1's and 0's. 

The obverse has a reduced-sized effigy of Queen Elizabeth by Ian Rank-Broadley and a very futuristic design with more computer codes, including towers of code with a human head on top and various futuristic structures.

The coin carries a $2 denomination, has a mintage of 500 coins, an antique finish, and is made of two ounces of pure silver.  It has a diameter of 50 millimeters and a weight of 62.2 grams.

Of special interest is the application of fluorescent ultra violet (UV) coloring on the head on the reverse that makes it glow in the dark.  It is best to put the coin under a light source for 30 seconds and then place it in the dark to see it glow.

The serial number is on the coin and the certificate of authenticity, and the coin comes in a luxurious wooden box and a colorful shipper.

The AI coin is being sold for $224.90 by First Coin Company (www.firstcoincompany.com) in California with free worldwide shipping. As always if you live somewhere where they charge any import duties or fees, First Coin Company will reimburse them. Here is a link to the listing: https://firstcoincompany.com/S/niue...016-fluorescent-uv-effect-antique-finish-2-oz

You can use the code "THANKYOU" for a 3% discount.

 

Future coins in the series are expected to deal with topics such as personal robotics and virtual reality.

This unusual piece is a fitting tribute to perhaps the most important field of study and knowledge of all time, one on which the future of the human race depends, according to Elon Musk, founder of Tesla and Space X, who believes that we actually already live in a world of artificial intelligence.  In Musk's view there is only a one in a billion chance that we are not living in a computer simulation, and idea that many people may find hard to grasp.

AI is commonly understood as the idea of creating computers that mimic the cognitive functions we associate with the human mind, such as learning and problem solving.  AI has already been used to create computers that can beat professional chess players and self-driving cars.

As was suggested back in 1968 in the film, “2001: A Space Odyssey,” which featured a computer called Hal that took over the spaceship, the challenge of AI is to create machines that make our world better rather than going against humans and potentially destroying the world.  At the same time, as Musk argues, unless we keep advancing, civilization will destroy itself.