Why can't a (very optimized to the point of not really being a) markov chain be smarter than a person? What are your requirements for outputs, abilities, and internal methods?
99% of what people do day to day is repetitive/unoriginal so it is not too surprising that this is happening, but I wonder if we are really any closer to an AI that can develop a novel and important scientific theory or mathematical result for instance? When can we expect AI to resolve the quantum gravity issue? If it can't do that, but eventually humans do, what does that say about AI I wonder?
We're no closer. Like you say, we're showing that more and more of what we do involves no actual intelligence, but it's in the margins that real intelligence exists. We're no closer to simulating (or even describing) the unique aspects intelligence than we were in the 50s. We just have Eliza with 200 billion parameters.
"Mathematicians at the University of Oxford used the AI to discover a surprising connection between algebraic and geometric invariant knots, establishing a completely new theorem in the field."[0]
The goalposts will continue moving until morale impairs.
"People who talk like this are idiotic at best."