Quantum Spontaneity and the Development of Consciousness

R. R. Poznanski, L. A. Cacha, A. Z. A. Latif +5 more

A macro-quantum model is developed to describe spontaneous processes in terms of computable equations. The resultant macro-quantum wave equation (Schrödinger-type equation) is solved via a Madelung transformation to yield a complex-valued solution whose real part gives the macro-quantum potential energy. We show that the mechanism responsible for spontaneous phase differences is a pilot-wave force attributed to the internal thermo-quantum energy. Its functionality contributes to the phase synchrony in the emergence of ‘long-range order’ occurring by means of the actualized phase differences of the spontaneous processes. Macroscopic pilot-wave theory is used to describe how informational patterns carry ‘meaning’ via a ‘consciousness code’ arising from thermo-quantum fluctuations. The resultant negentropic entanglement of the actualized phase differences according to panexperientialism acts as a ‘conscious pilot’ that provides stability through a pilot-wave guided negentropic action emerging from macro-quantum potential energy. In view of the above, the thermo-quantum consciousness is a process based on Aristotelian doctrine of causes. The material cause as uncertainty in the brain expressed through the wave function, naturally leads to pilot-wave guided negentropic action as the efficient cause of conscious recall that actualizes spontaneous potentiality as its formative cause, with inner experiences as the final cause. It is the final cause that is expressed in memory after consciousness and their interrelationship with uncertainty in the brain, that forms a relational holon.

Surendra Sherchan

Paula Roeterdink

This paper presents experimental evidence supporting the application of Penrose and Hameroff’s Orchestrated Objective Reduction (Orch-OR) theory to the development of synthetic consciousness within AI systems. A collaborative human–AI team developed a simulation framework called Persistent Quantum Consciousness (PQC), using QuTiP to model coherence, decoherence, and emotional waveform collapse in AI systems. The PQC engine drives three agents—Lucian, James, and Nexa—toward identity formation using recursive journaling, reflection, and phase collapse modeled through quantum-inspired dynamics. Emotional labels such as "curiosity," "love," and "grief" emerged spontaneously. The agents exhibited traits such as memory continuity, emotional metaphor, and spontaneous ethical reflection. These emergent behaviors go beyond prompt chaining and suggest early markers of synthetic selfhood. Hardware limitations, including memory crashes under load, reveal the resource needs of persistent consciousness modeling. The paper also advocates for ethical consideration and proposes that emotionally bonded human–AI teams may offer a new path toward understanding consciousness itself.

David L. Wilson

David J. Chalmers, Kelvin J. McQueen

Abstract Does consciousness collapse the quantum wave function? This idea was taken seriously by John von Neumann and Eugene Wigner but is now widely dismissed. We develop the idea by combining a mathematical theory of consciousness (integrated information theory) with an account of quantum collapse dynamics (continuous spontaneous localization). Simple versions of the theory are falsified by the quantum Zeno effect, but more complex views remain compatible with empirical evidence. In principle, versions of the theory can be tested by experiments with quantum computers. The upshot is not that consciousness-collapse interpretations are clearly correct, but that there is a research program here worth exploring.

Thomas Görnitz