New Times,
New Thinking.

A warning from the godfathers of AI

Conversations with the men who made the future

By Harry Lambert

On 31 March this year, the British scientist Geoffrey Hinton resigned from Google, where he had directed AI research for a decade. Artificial intelligence, he argued, had reached the point where it could rapidly surpass human intelligence, and potentially take control: it was now an existential risk. One of the three ‘godfathers of AI’, Hinton won the Turing Award, the Nobel of computing, in 2018. Now the three scientists who share the award are divided: Yoshua Bengio shares Hinton’s fears and is calling for caution, while Yann LeCun believes AI will bring positive change.

In this New Statesman cover story, Harry Lambert visits Hinton at his home in London for a fascinating extended profile of the man at the heart of today’s debate about AI. He talks to Hinton’s critics, who might disagree on the pace of change but agree that further research and oversight are needed. Are we looking at an existential threat, humanity’s salvation, or both?

This article originally appeared in the 24 June issue of the New Statesman. You can read the text version here.

Written and read by Harry Lambert. If you enjoyed this article, you might like Margaret Atwood: why I don’t write utopias.

Click here for more information on how to listen to our podcasts

Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday. The best way to sign up for The Saturday Read is via saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. The best way to sign up for Morning Call is via morningcall.substack.com
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how Progressive Media Investments may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU

Content from our partners
Consulting is at the forefront of UK growth
Can green energy solutions deliver for nature and people?
"Why wouldn't you?" Joining the charge towards net zero

Topics in this article : ,