The Debate on AI Safety Divides Tech Industry Leaders into Two Groups
2,600 tech industry leaders and entrepreneurs, including Elon Musk, Gary Marcus, and Steve Wozniak, have signed an open letter requesting artificial intelligence (AI) labs to pause research and development for six months. The signatories believe that safety programs and regulations need to be strengthened, as AI labs are currently in an "out-of-control race to develop and deploy" the technology. However, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong disagreed with this approach on Thursday, stating that people should not "let fear stop progress."
Tech Industry Leaders Call for Moratorium on AI Development
An
open letter signed by 2,600 leaders and researchers in
the tech industry has recommended that AI labs pause their work for six months,
and if they refuse, governments should impose a moratorium on development. The
group believes that AI is "now becoming human-competitive at general
tasks" and proclaims that those powerful AI systems should be developed
"only once we are confident that their effects will be positive and their
risks will be manageable."
"Unfortunately,
this level of planning and management is not happening, even though recent
months have seen AI labs locked in an out-of-control race to develop and deploy
ever more powerful digital minds that no one—not even their creators—can
understand, predict, or reliably control," the open letter has described. The
signatories of the letter include Tesla CEO Elon Musk, politician Andrew Yang,
AI author Gary Marcus, and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak.
The
letter notes that AI developers should work with policymakers to create
powerful AI systems. The letter cautions that AI could threaten democracy and
cause dramatic economic and political disruptions. The letter has more than
2,000 signatories, but not everyone agrees with pausing, and some have called it "ridiculous."
"Among all the obvious reasons why this temporary pause seems like a silly
idea, I also can’t help feeling like this could be a knee-jerk reaction by the
corporate elite after having seen just how easily this technology will make
many of their goods and services irrelevant," an individual has summed up.
Coinbase CEO Terms "Bad Idea" to Stop Progress
"This
is a bad call. Only forward," another individual has tweeted. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong shared his opinion on Thursday. Armstrong
said fear should not stop progress and that people should be wary of
such plans. "Count me among the people who think this is a bad idea,"
Armstrong tweeted. "There are no ‘experts’ to adjudicate this issue, and
many disparate actors will never agree. Committees and bureaucracy won’t solve
anything." Armstrong added:
"As
with many technologies, there are dangers, but we should keep marching forward
with progress because the good outweighs the bad. The marketplace of ideas
leads to better outcomes than central planning. Don’t ever let fear stop
progress, and be wary of anyone trying to capture control under some central
authority."
Many
others believe that pausing AI development is not a good idea, and some insist
that the plan is for AI monopolies that are already leading the race to
maintain self-preservation. Regius Professor and CEO of Chemify, Lee
Cronin, wrote, "This is nonsensical. It’s like
asking to destroy the book that explains how to build the printing press, which
itself was printed on the printing press." The discussion regarding a
pause in AI development has become a topical and controversial subject this
week, and it’s currently unclear whether AI labs will follow the opinions
expressed by the tech industry leaders.
What
is your take on the debate over the moratorium on AI development? Please
post your comments.
0 Comments