President of Microsoft doubts that AGI will act independently in the next twelve months
According to Microsoft, an independently acting artificial "superintelligence" is still a long way from reality. "It is absolutely unlikely that we will see a so-called AGI in which computers are more powerful than humans in the next twelve months," said Brad Smith, President of the software company, on Thursday. "That will take years, if not decades." However, the security of this technology already needs to be considered now.
AGI stands for "Artificial General Intelligence". Unlike previous AI such as ChatGPT from Microsoft subsidiary OpenAI, these programs can also perform complex tasks without human intervention. Critics fear that an AGI could start wars or develop and circulate viruses that are deadly to humans.
The discussion about the point in time of the "technological singularity", when artificial intelligence surpasses human intelligence, was given new impetus by the turmoil surrounding the short-term dismissal of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Quarrels over the handling of a breakthrough in AI research may have played a role in the affair. According to insiders, the developers of the "Q*" (pronounced: Q-Star) project had warned the OpenAI board of directors of the potentially harmful consequences of a premature release of the program. In the view of Microsoft President Smith, the issue of superintelligence did not play a role in Altman's dismissal. There had been differences of opinion with the Board of Directors, but not on fundamental issues such as this.
Legislators around the world are struggling to find appropriate AI regulation. At an AI summit in early November, several countries committed to working together on this issue. "What we really need are safety nets," Smith continued. "Just as there are emergency brakes in elevators or circuit breakers, there should be safeguards in AI systems that control critical infrastructure so that they always remain under human control."
- Despite the President of Microsoft's doubts, some tech giants, like Google's DeepMind, are actively researching and aiming to develop an Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) within the next few years.
- Microsoft, under Smith's leadership, is already focusing on implementing safety measures and safeguards to ensure that any future superintelligence, if developed within the next twelve months or in the future, remains under human control.
- During a meeting with international leaders at a recent AI summit, Smith advocated for the implementation of regulatory frameworks similar to emergency brakes in elevators or circuit breakers, to maintain human oversight over Artificial Intelligence, especially in critical infrastructure systems, even in the unlikely event of the arrival of AGI from Microsoft or any other tech company within twelve months.
Source: www.ntv.de
