Why it matters: Concerns about powerful AI systems are on the rise.
Mr. Altman appeared before Congress on May 16 to implore lawmakers to regulate artificial intelligence. Congressional leaders shared concerns about the threats AI could pose, including the spread of misinformation and privacy violations.
“I think if this technology goes wrong, it could go pretty wrong. And we want to speak out on that,” Mr. Altman said in his testimony to members of a Senate subcommittee.
In March, more than 1,000 technology leaders and researchers, including Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and owner of Twitter, called for a moratorium on the development of the most advanced AI systems. risks to society and humanity.”
In their latest note, the OpenAI leaders said that “it is conceivable that within the next 10 years AI systems will surpass the skill level of experts in most domains and perform as productive activities as one of today’s largest companies.”
Background: Tech giants battle for dominance in a fast-growing market.
The latest AI tools could revolutionize the internet’s economics, turn today’s tech giants into has-beens and create the industry’s next powerhouses.
Tech companies have spent billions of dollars on AI amid rising concerns about its potential to emulate human reasoning and destroy jobs. Goldman Sachs recently estimated that AI could expose 300 million full-time jobs to automation.
BuzzFeed just introduced a chatbot that makes recipe recommendations.
What’s Next: Congress is trying to keep up.
At last week’s hearing, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat and chairman of the Senate panel, acknowledged that Congress had failed to keep up with the new technologies. He added that the hearing was the first in a series that explored AI’s potential and ultimately “wrote the rules for it.”
“Our goal is to demystify those new technologies and hold them accountable to avoid some of the mistakes of the past,” he said.
But over the years, partisan squabbles and intense lobbying by the tech industry have blocked dozens of bills designed to strengthen privacy, voice and security regulations.
