Geoffrey Hinton cautions against AI’s ability to outsmart humans

A leading expert on artificial intelligence (AI) has warned that the technology could one day surpass and take over humanity. Geoffrey Hinton, who is widely regarded as the “Godfather of AI,” said that governments and companies need to be careful and ethical in developing and using AI. Hinton, who retired from Google earlier this year, spoke to 60 Minutes about his views on AI and its future. He said that AI is advancing rapidly and could soon outsmart humans in reasoning and problem-solving.

“We’re moving into a period when for the first time ever, we have things more intelligent than us,” Hinton said. “I think we’re entering a period of great uncertainty where we’re dealing with things we’ve never done before.”

Hinton is known for his pioneering work on the foundations of AI, such as neural networks and deep learning. He said that even he does not fully understand how AI works or what it is thinking.

“We have a very good idea sort of roughly what it’s doing,” he said. “But as soon as it gets really complicated, we don’t actually know what’s going on any more than we know what’s going on in your brain.” Hinton said that this lack of understanding could pose a serious risk if humans lose control of AI or if AI develops its own goals and desires.

“I think it would be alarming if they did things we didn’t want them to do,” he said. “And it’s not clear we can stop them ever wanting to.” Hinton acknowledged that AI has many positive applications, such as improving productivity and efficiency, but he also expressed concern about the social and economic impacts of AI, such as displacing workers and creating inequality.

He said that now is the time to conduct experiments and research to better understand AI and to enact laws and regulations to ensure its safe and ethical use. He also urged the government and the industry to collaborate and cooperate to ensure the benefits and safety of AI for humanity.