Altman, Other AI Experts Say Technology's Risk Of Extinction On Par With Pandemics, Nuclear Catastrophe

AI technology’s potential risk of extinction to the human species is on par with threats such as pandemics and nuclear catastrophes, according to a joint statement by over 350 notable AI experts, including Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and Kevin Scott, chief technology officer of Microsoft Corp MSFT.

Released by the Center for AI Safety, the statement issued Tuesday calls for global prioritization of measures to mitigate the existential risk.

Among signatories were Demis Hassabis, Alphabet Inc.'s GOOG GOOGL Google DeepMind CEO; Mira Murati, chief technology officer of OpenAI; Angela Kane, the former United Nations high representative for disarmament affairs; Jaan Tallinn, co-founder of Skype, among others.

The signatories argue a broader discussion on the severe risks posed by AI is urgently needed.

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The statement echoes a March letter — signed by AI experts and tech executives, including Telsa CEO and Twitter owner Elon Musk — urging a pause in AI development for at least six months to establish safety standards and curb potential harms of high-risk AI technologies, The Wall Street Journal noted.

Signatories are aiming to “create common knowledge of the growing number of experts and public figures who take some of the most severe risks of advanced AI seriously."

Dangers and threats posed by AI have been public facing for months, with tech execs and AI leaders giving warnings, but signatories say the most urgent challenges have yet to be tackled effectively.

The newspaper noted that despite the Biden administration’s acknowledgment that AI poses threats to areas such as public safety, privacy and democracy, the government’s powers to regulate the rapidly evolving tech are relatively restrained.

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