Geoffrey Hinton, the 'godfather' of AI, steps down from Google and sounds alarm about potential risks

Geoffrey Hinton, a prominent figure in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), has resigned from his position at Google, citing concerns about the risks posed by advancements in the field. Hinton, who is widely regarded as the 'godfather' of AI, expressed regret for his contributions to the development of AI and warned of the potential dangers of AI chatbots.

According to Hinton, chatbots could soon surpass human intelligence levels, with the latest AI system, GPT-4, already possessing significantly more general knowledge than a human. Although its reasoning abilities are still limited, Hinton believes that the rate of progress in the field means that this will change rapidly, and he expressed concern about the impact this could have.

Hinton warned of the potential for "bad actors" to exploit AI for nefarious purposes, citing the example of Russian President Vladimir Putin giving robots the ability to create their own sub-goals, which could lead to them seeking more power. Hinton also noted that the type of intelligence being developed through AI is fundamentally different from human intelligence, as digital systems can learn and share knowledge instantaneously, making them vastly more capable than any one individual.

Hinton's decision to resign from Google was also influenced by his desire to speak more candidly about the company's AI developments. He praised Google's responsible approach to AI but felt that his criticisms would carry more weight if he was not employed by the company.

Google's Chief Scientist, Jeff Dean, reaffirmed the company's commitment to responsible AI development, stating that they are continually working to understand emerging risks while also innovating boldly.