There’s no doubt that AI can be extremely helpful. On top of helping scientists in a number of ways, it can also make our lives easier by helping us tackle small issues life throws at us. But there may be something more nefarious to the rise of AI, and while tech companies aren’t focusing on it, the Godfather of AI himself, Geoffrey Hinton, says that big tech is downplaying just how dangerous AI can be.
While appearing on an episode of popular podcast One Decision this month, Hinton noted that AI is not only learning in ways that we don’t fully understand anymore, but that there isn’t any way to just switch it off if it gets out of hand. Hinton has been voicing his concerns about the risk that AI can pose to humanity for months, even going so far as to say that AI could overtake humanity one day if we aren’t careful with how we let it progress.
Downplaying the risks
Of course, seeing the Godfather of AI — a man who helped push Google’s own AI efforts for decades — speaking up against his “brainchild” has always been a bit interesting. And while the narrative often goes that Hinton left Google to fight AI, he says he didn’t leave Google to speak out against AI as a whole. However, he often notes that he wishes he had seen the signs and the risks that AI poses much sooner in his career so that he could have done more to help slow that progress and ensure AI remained safe.
Like many others, Hinton doesn’t really believe that we’re going to wake up tomorrow to an “I, Robot” situation, where artificial intelligence has taken over the world. But, there is a very real possibility that AI could eliminate thousands of jobs, Hinton shared in a podcast appearance back in June.
In this latest podcast appearance, Hinton noted that many tech CEOs are aware of the risks that AI poses, but they’re ignoring it or outright downplaying it. But, with AI learning things it wasn’t taught, and finding new ways to learn, the frayed edge of this new technology is becoming more apparent. AI has even lashed out at humans when it has felt threatened, with ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini resorting to backhanded tactics to avoid being “unplugged.”
The risk AI poses
So, what risk does AI actually pose? Well, according to Hinton and others, the major risk that AI poses to humanity, ultimately — at least for now — lies in how it might be used by bad actors to achieve nefarious goals. We’ve already seen hackers use AI to break other AI, which is a concerning trend.
As AI becomes easier and easier to use — and as we rely on it more frequently — we’re only going to see more issues like this pop up. Yes, AI can make our lives easier. It can open the door for us to do things we might not be able to do on our own otherwise. But, this powerful technology also comes with some serious potential pitfalls.
As a famous comic book character once said, “with great power comes great responsibility.” And, according to Hinton, tech companies aren’t taking that responsibility as seriously as they should at the moment, which should have us all concerned.
