Artificial superintelligence is decades away

HAccording to Microsoft, artificial “super intelligence” that operates autonomously is still a long way from reality. “It is extremely unlikely that we will see so-called artificial general intelligence (AGI) in the next 12 months, where computers are more powerful than humans,” Brad Smith, the software company’s president, said on Thursday. “It will take years, if not decades.” However, we have to start thinking about how safe this technology is now.

AGI stands for “artificial general intelligence.” Unlike previous AI such as ChatGPT from Microsoft’s OpenAI, these programs can also perform complex tasks without human intervention. Critics fear that artificial general intelligence could spark wars or develop and spread viruses that are deadly to humans.

Did superintelligence play a role in Altman’s firing?

The debate over the point of “technological singularity,” when artificial intelligence outperforms human intelligence, has gained new fuel due to the confusion surrounding the short-lived firing of OpenAI chief Sam Altman. Quarrels over the handling of hacks in AI research may have played a role in the issue. According to informed sources, the developers of the “Q*” (pronounced: Q-Star) project have warned the OpenAI board of directors of the potentially harmful consequences of deploying the software prematurely. From Microsoft President Smith’s point of view, the issue of superintelligence played no role in Altman’s dismissal. There were differences of opinion with the Board of Directors, but not on fundamental issues such as these.

Lawmakers around the world are struggling to find appropriate regulation for artificial intelligence. At the AI ​​Summit at the beginning of November, several countries committed to working together on this issue. “What we really need are safety nets,” Smith continued. “Just as there are emergency brakes in elevators or circuit breakers, there should also be such valves in AI systems that control critical infrastructure so that they always remain under human control.”