Very interesting article. The Hard AI problem is one of the new frontiers of science.

If you're interested in this topic, I highly suggest you check out the Radiolab episode on emergence.

The episode doesn't focus on AI, per se, but it does talk a lot about how many individual things (ants, fireflies, bees) are not intelligent on their own, but do appear intelligent as a collective whole.

Here's the link: http://www.wnyc.org/shows/radiolab/episodes/2005/02/18