Geoffrey Hinton, the AI pioneer and "Godfather of AI," has warned that AI poses a more immediate threat to humanity than climate change. Hinton expressed concerns about the potential risks associated with artificial intelligence, particularly the possibility that AI could surpass human intelligence and take control of the planet. He also highlighted the potential for AI to be trained as tools to influence elections, wage wars, spread misinformation, and replace jobs.

Hinton recently resigned from his position as Vice President and Chief Scientist at Alphabet, Google's parent company, in order to openly express his concerns about the risks of the technology. He fears that unrestricted AI development could pose a danger to humanity. Hinton emphasized the need for regulations to govern AI development, cautioning against a race between Microsoft and Google that could drive AI development without adequate safeguards.

Geoffrey Hinton's work has been groundbreaking for the development of modern AI systems. He played a key role in developing AI technologies that are crucial for the next generation of high-performance chatbots, such as ChatGPT. Along with David Rumelhart and Ronald J. Williams, Hinton co-authored a highly influential paper titled "Learning Representations by Back-Propagating Errors" in 1986, which is considered a milestone in the development of neural networks underlying AI technology.

In 2018, Geoffrey Hinton received the Turing Award, widely regarded as the highest honor in computer science and colloquially referred to as the "Nobel Prize of Computing."

Hinton's decision to speak out about the technology comes at a time when lawmakers, interest groups, and tech insiders have already raised concerns about the potential spread of misinformation and job displacement by a new generation of AI-powered chatbots. In an interview with MIT Technology Review, Hinton expressed his changed views on whether these entities would be more intelligent than humans, stating that they are now very close and will likely be much smarter in the future. He questioned how society will survive in such a scenario.

In another interview with Reuters, Geoffrey Hinton drew a comparison between AI and climate change as significant threats to humanity. While acknowledging the importance of addressing climate change, Hinton suggested that AI could become a more acute threat. He emphasized the difficulty in recommending actions to mitigate the risks associated with AI, unlike the straightforward solution of stopping carbon emissions in the case of climate change.

Hinton's concerns are shared by many, as evidenced by over 1,000 researchers and technologists signing an open letter calling for a six-month pause in AI development due to profound risks to society and humanity. However, Hinton disagrees with those calling for a halt in AI research, considering it unrealistic. He believes it is an existential risk that requires intensive efforts and resources to find solutions, involving tech leaders and policymakers.

President Biden has also held discussions with AI industry leaders, including Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, at the White House. Biden recognizes AI as one of the most powerful tools of our time but stresses the need to mitigate its risks in order to harness its potential. He highlighted the importance of responsible innovation and protecting the rights and safety of people during the meeting.