An artificial intelligence luminary, known as the “godfather of AI”, has quit his job at Google and warned of the threat of “things more intelligent than us taking control”.
Dr Geoffrey Hinton, a British cognitive psychologist and computer scientist living in San Francisco, along with his students, are behind the creation of an AI system bought by Google in 2012 that has led to current chatbots like ChatGPT and Google Bard.
ChatGPT was launched late last year and it has become an online sensation due to its ability to hold natural conversations but also to generate text like speeches, songs and essays.
But Mr Hinton, 75, said developments that AI technology is now making, with larger amounts of data, is “scary”.
His resignation was announced in an interview with the New York Times on Monday.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Hinton explained: “Right now, they’re not more intelligent than us, as far as I can tell. But I think they soon may be."
He warned that now computer scientists have “discovered [AI] works better than we expected a few years ago” that society must be aware of “long-term risks of things more intelligent than us taking control”.
“It’s as if you had 10,000 people and whenever one person learnt something, everybody automatically knew it. That’s how these chats can know so much more than any one person,” he explained.
Mr Hinton told the New York Times he feared of “bad actors” who would use the technology “for bad things”.
One example he gave was authoritarian leaders using AI to “manipulate” people.
Mr Hinton said he is not criticising Google, who had been “very responsible” with the technology, but wanted to talk freely after resigning from the tech giant after more than a decade.
Google’s chief scientist Jeff Dean told the BBC: "We remain committed to a responsible approach to AI. We’re continually learning to understand emerging risks while also innovating boldly."
Mr Hinton’s warnings come just months after technology experts including Elon Musk signed a letter urging scientists to pause developing AI to ensure it does not pose a risk to humanity.
Tech chiefs including Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Skype co-founder Jaan Tallinn have signed an open letter demanding all labs stop training AI systems for at least six months.
The prevalence of AI has increased massively in recent years, with systems such as chatbot ChatGPT quickly becoming part of everyday life.
The letter said: “Recent months have seen AI labs locked in an out-of-control race to develop and deploy ever more powerful digital minds that no-one – not even their creators – can understand, predict or reliably control.
