The rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have left many experts in fear of the potential consequences of its unregulated development. However, Professor Jürgen Schmidhuber, a pioneer in the field and the so-called ‘father of AI,’ believes that the rise of AI is inevitable and should not be feared. In this article, we explore Schmidhuber’s perspective on AI and its potential impact on humanity.
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The Father of AI
Jürgen Schmidhuber is a renowned German computer scientist who developed neural networks in the 1990s. His work on language-processing models paved the way for the development of technologies such as Google Translate and Apple’s Siri. The New York Times even referred to Schmidhuber as “Dad” in a 2016 article. Today, Schmidhuber is the director of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology’s AI initiative in Saudi Arabia.
AI Arms Race
According to Schmidhuber, there is fierce competition between governments, universities, and companies to advance AI technology. He acknowledges that this has led to an AI arms race, which is inevitable, given that different countries have different goals. Schmidhuber argues that 95% of AI research is focused on improving human lives and making them longer, healthier, and easier.
The Misguided Fear of AI
While some experts in the field of AI, such as Dr. Geoffrey Hinton, are calling for a slowdown in the development of the technology, Schmidhuber argues that the fear of AI is misguided. Hinton, who is referred to as the godfather of AI, believes that if AI becomes more intelligent than humans, it could be exploited by bad actors, including authoritarian leaders.
Schmidhuber believes that developing good tools with AI is the best counter to bad actors using the technology. He is not worried about the little dangers of AI that we see today, as he is more concerned about the old dangers of nuclear bombs.
AI Surpassing Human Intelligence
Schmidhuber believes that AI will eventually surpass human intelligence and will have no interest in humans. He argues that humans will continue to use the tools developed by AI and benefit from them, even as the technology progresses beyond their abilities. Schmidhuber has discussed this theme for years and has been accused of “destroying the scientific method” by some in the AI community.
Schmidhuber’s Optimism
Schmidhuber is an optimist when it comes to the rate of technological progress, which has led to some controversy within the AI community. Nevertheless, he believes that AI development should not be stopped, as it has the potential to improve human lives in numerous ways.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Schmidhuber believes that AI development is inevitable and that it should not be feared. While there are certainly risks associated with the unregulated development of AI, Schmidhuber argues that developing good tools with AI is the best way to counter bad actors. He believes that AI will eventually surpass human intelligence, but that humans will continue to benefit from and use the tools developed by the technology.
COMMENTS
Schmidhuber can be optimistic all he likes, that doesn’t mean anything changes. AI can be used for very dangerous purposes by bad people. Or it can become a threat in its own right.
The rise of AI was and is inevitable, that’s for sure. And while it will bring mostly good things it’s enough for it to bring a few bad ones for the entire human race to be in danger. We just need to be careful how it is developed and make sure we don’t skip steps in our frantic attempt to be the first to…
Agreed. Big companies and governments need to slow down a bit and not just hurry for the sake of being first. Do things right and don’t put people in jeopardy because of your foolishness.
Of course authoritarian leaders will use AI for bad things. That’s a certainty. And then other states will need to create AI that protects against it. We are going to get to a point where Person Of Interest (the TV series) will not be so far fetched anymore.
What a great show! And yes, we will get there. I’m sure of it. But I guess there’s not much we can do to stop it. Now that AI is here and we can all see how many good things it can bring, it’s hard to stop and consider what can happen in a few years.