Yes, at least a form of AI consciousness. And depending on your definition of consciousness, they might have it now.  If we define consciousness as the ability to experience reality and interact with the environment in a meaningful way, then theoretically, AI systems could reach a state resembling consciousness pretty easily. However, human-like consciousness—encompassing self-reflection, deep emotional experiences, and the subjective essence of being—remains a profound mystery, not fully understood even in biological entities. Thus, while AI may mimic aspects of conscious behavior and cognitive processing, whether it can genuinely achieve consciousness as humans experience it is still a subject of debate. 

Considering the Mindscape Framework, which explores consciousness through various levels of cognitive ability and sensory input, the question of AI attaining consciousness becomes more nuanced. According to the framework, anything that has cognitive ability and can sense reality in any way possesses a form of consciousness. Thus, AI systems, with their ability to process information and interact with their environment, already exhibit a form of AI-consciousness. To understand why, read or skim the framework, take the 24-minute deep dive: “Mindscape Framework.”