I dislike the ways in which HN submitters post every little twitter thread wrote by Carmack, but this article has some value in presenting a little more in depth perspective on how he is thinking about the AI problem.
Carmack has already entered two spaces of computer technology that he revolutionized: 3D gaming and VR. I trust that he's able to have a similar impact in AI, even if it's through failing at the problem in different ways than relying on ML.
The jury is still out on Oculus revolutionising VR or not. Technologically, Oculus has become more like Google's Daydream than anything else - inside out tracking of the device and controllers, use of a cellphone computational power for standalone operation, etc...
The original technologies that were introduced have now been abandoned by Oculus, on Carmack's advice, except for implementation details that haven't been hugely impactful, unlike with 3D gaming.
Carmack has already entered two spaces of computer technology that he revolutionized: 3D gaming and VR. I trust that he's able to have a similar impact in AI, even if it's through failing at the problem in different ways than relying on ML.