On Tuesday, shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL) inches down in pre trading session after realizing that machines may become smarter than people far sooner than he and other experts imagined, an artificial intelligence pioneer resigned Google to speak freely about the technology’s hazards.
Geoffrey Hinton wrote on Twitter that “I left so that I could talk about the dangers of AI without considering how this impacts Google”.
In an interview with the New York Times, Hinton expressed concern over AI’s ability to produce convincing fake visuals and words, resulting in a future in which people “will no longer be able to know what is true.”
“It’s difficult to see how you can keep bad actors from using it for bad things,” he remarked.
As it learns new behaviors, the technology could quickly displace workers and become a greater threat.
“The idea that this stuff could actually get smarter than people, a few people believed that,” he told the New York Times. “However, most people believed it was a long shot. And I thought it was a long shot. I assumed it would be 30 to 50 years or possibly longer. Clearly, I no longer believe that.”
Hinton stated in his tweet that Google had “acted very responsibly” and disputed that he left to criticize his previous company.
Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. In a statement, Google’s head scientist, Jeff Dean, said, “We remain committed to a responsible approach to A.I.” We are always learning to recognize emerging hazards and to innovate aggressively.”
