>>> WE'RE BACK NOW, 7:40. THIS MORNING AN ANONYMOUS NEW WARNING ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. >> A ONE SENTENCE STATEMENT THAT WAS CO-SIGNED BY SOME OF THE FIELD'S LEADING EXECUTIVES CLAIMING THERE IS A RISK THAT AI COULD LEAD TO HUMAN EXTINCTION AND MITIGATING THE RISK SHOULD BE A GLOBAL PRIORITY. >> NBC'S TECH CORRESPONDENT JACOB WARD RAISES THE ALARM. MITIGATING THE RISK OFFICS TENSION FROM AI SHOULD BE A GLOBAL PRIORITY, ALONGSIDE OTHER SOCIETAL SCALE RISKS SUCH AS PANDEMICS AND NUCLEAR WAR.
THIS IS AN INCREDIBLE STATEMENT, JAKE. BUT ALSO WHO SIGNED IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT. TELL US ABOUT THAT. >> Reporter: WELL, THAT'S RIGHT. WE'RE TALKING HERE. YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY ABOUT SOME OF THE TOP MINDS IN THE FIELD, AT LEAST SOME OF THE TOP MINDS ACROSS COMPANIES. YOU HAVE EXECUTIVES FROM OPEN AI, MICROSOFT, GOOGLE AND A HOST SIGNING THIS STATEMENT. IT IS ABOUT THE BAD NEWS END OF THE KIND OF SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE YOU MIGHT IMAGINE, RIGHT? WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY THAT AI MIGHT BECOME SO SMART THAT IT EVENTUALLY SLIPS THE BONDS OF HUMAN COMMAND AND BEGINS TO MAKE ITS OWN DECISIONS AND PERHAPS DECISIONS THAT WON'T BE GOOD FOR HUMANITY, RIGHT? THAT'S THE LEVEL OF EXTINCTION RISK THAT THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT HERE.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT, OF COURSE, WE DO NOT HAVE THAT TECHNOLOGY YET. THIS IS A THEORETICAL OUTCOME DOWN THE ROAD. BUT THIS IS A BUNCH OF TOP MINDS ACROSS THE INDUSTRY AND ACADEMIA SAYING THEY WANT TO GET ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF DOING SO AND TAKE IT SERIOUSLY. >> I THINK PEOPLE ARE WONDERING HOW AFRAID SHOULD I BE OF THIS? THEY USE THESE SCARY BIG WORDS, BUT WHAT IS A REGULAR PERSON SUPPOSED TO THINK? >> IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE NOWHERE NEAR THE KIND OF ARTIFICIAL GENERAL INTELLIGENCE THAT PEOPLE THEORIZE COULD LEAD TO AN EVENT LIKE THIS.
I THINK IT IS ALSO REALLY IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT, WHILE WE CAN ALL AGREE, AS THIS STATEMENT DOES THAT BEING ENSLAVED BY ROBOTS IS A BAD THING, THERE IS A LOT OF SHORT-TERM STUFF PEOPLE ARE NOT AGREEING ON. WHILE A LOT OF THESE PEOPLE CAME TOGETHER, OTHER PEOPLE ARE WORKING AS HARD AS THEY CAN TO MAKE MONEY AS QUICKLY AS THEY CAN. THIS INCLUDES OPEN AI SAM ALTMAN. SO THERE IS A COGNIZANT DISSONANCE HERE. WE'RE NOT GOING TO SLOW DOWN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AI IN THE MEANTIME. >> THE PHRASE THAT YOU JUST USED, SLIPPING THE BONDS OF HUMAN COMMAND, WHAT — EXPLAIN WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF AI WERE TO TAKE OVER? HOW WOULD THAT PLAY OUT? >> Reporter: WELL, YOU KNOW, THE POTENTIAL, RIGHT, THE SCI-FI MOVIE IS "THE TERMINATOR" SCENARIO THAT IF YOU WERE HAND OVER REALLY IMPORTANT FUNCTIONS TO AI AND IT DECIDES THIS OUTCOME YOU HAVE TOLD ME TO AIM FOR DOESN'T SEEM LIKE THE RIGHT ONE. I WILL GO FOR THIS ONE INSTEAD. THAT'S THE KIND OF THING PEOPLE WORRY ABOUT.
BUT IT IS THE SHORTER-TERM STUFF THAT I SPEAK TO ARE MUCH MORE WORRIED ABOUT. A STATEMENT LIKE THIS GATHERS A LOT OF ATTENTION AND DISTRACTS US FROM SHORTER-TERM QUESTIONS. SHOULD WE BE WORRIED ABOUT THE POTENTIAL FOR THIS SYSTEM TO TAKE AWAY THE JOBS WE DEPEND ON? IS IT GOING TO DECIDE WHETHER I DESERVE A BANK LOAN. RIGHT? THESE KINDS OF USES ARE ALREADY OUT THERE. WHILE IT IS TEMPTING TO THINK ONLY ABOUT THE DANGERS IN THE LONG-TERM LIKE WHAT THESE SIGNATORIES ARE WRITING ABOUT HERE, IT IS THE SHORT-TERM EFFECTS OF AI THAT CRITICS ARE TELLING ME THEY SHOULD BE MOST SQUARELY FOCUSED ON RIGHT NOW.
>> A STATEMENT LIKE THIS IS EXPLOSIVE AND TERRIFYING JUST ON ITS VERY TERMS. ON THE OTHER HAND, THEY HAVE ALL THESE SIGNATORIES SAYING WE WARNED YOU. THEY'RE SAYING REGULATE US. BUT THEY AREN'T AGREEING ON WHAT THE REGULATION SHOULD BE. JUST PAUSE IT. DO A TIME-OUT FOR SIX MONTHS WHILE WE FIGURE THIS OUT. THERE IS NOT BROAD AGREEMENT ABOUT THAT. SO IT FEELS A LITTLE BIT LIKE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE BEING MANIPULATED BY THIS INDUSTRY SAYING, OH, WE'RE SO WORRIED ABOUT THIS, BUT WE WILL KEEP ON GOING HERE AND TRY TO MAKE A RACE TO KEEP ONGOING ABOUT THIS. >> Reporter: I THINK YOU ARE SEEING THIS VERY CLEARLY. WHEN I TALK TO TOP AI EXECUTIVES ACROSS THE INDUSTRY, THE THEME THAT A LOT OF THEM LAND ON IS, YES, WE WANT SOME SORT OF LARGER LEGISLATION, BUT LET THEM FIGURE OUT WHAT THIS SHOULD BE. THIS IS WHY YOU ARE SEEING SO MANY COUNTRIES TRYING TO ISSUE GUIDANCE ABOUT HOW THEY THEMSELVES SHOULD BE REGULATED AND IN THIS CASE PUTTING OUT A STATEMENT THAT THE ONE THAT CEO SAM ALTMAN AND OTHERS HAVE SIGNED IS A WAY OF SAYING WE HAVE THOUGHT OF BIGGER PROBLEMS THAN YOU HAVE AND YOU SHOULD LET US BE IN CHARGE OF OURSELVES TO HEAD OFF PROBLEMS.
EXPERTS I SPEAK TO SAY DON'T BE DISTRACTED. LET'S THINK ABOUT THE SHORT-TERM WAYS THIS NEEDS TO BE REGULATED AND IT MAY NOT BE THE BEST TO HAND THOSE COMPANIES TO DY VISE. IT SHOULD BE OUR RESPONSIBILITY AND THE RESPONSE BT OF LAWMAKERS TO THINK ABOUT HOW IT IS TO PUT GUARD RAILS ON THIS IN THE SHORT-TERM, NOT JUST IN THE SCIENCE FICTION .
