Experts say AI poses 'extinction' risk

 

Leading AI experts, including OpenAI and Google DeepMind executives, signed a brief statement citing an urgent need to address "the risk of extinction from AI," comparing its threat to nuclear war and pandemics.  In the open statement, more than 350 experts stressed that mitigating AI's risks should be a global priority. The statement was released by the Center for AI Safety and signed by prominent figures such as OpenAI's Sam Altman, DeepMind's Demis Hassabis, and Anthropic's Dario Amodei. The signatories also included Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott, musician Grimes, and renowned AI researchers Yoshua Bengio and Geoffrey Hinton, who have previously expressed concerns about the technology they helped develop. Contrary to some beliefs, many AI experts have privately expressed concerns about AI's risks, according to Dan Hendrycks, the Executive Director of the Center for AI Safety. He described the letter as a "coming-out" moment for industry figures who have been concerned about the risks of AI, including its impact on jobs and algorithmic biases. A letter in March signed by over 31,000 industry members, including Elon Musk and Steve Wozniak, called for a six-month pause in advanced AI development due to the substantial risks posed to society and humanity.