ChatGPT’s owner: ‘AI will surpass humans in 10 years’

CEO Sam Altman and Chairman Greg Brockman of OpenAI predict that AI could reach expert level in “most fields” within the next 10 years.

“With the current landscape as we see it, it is conceivable that within the next 10 years, AI systems will surpass the level of expertise in most fields and perform many tasks efficiently, akin to some of the largest corporations today,” stated the leadership team of OpenAI, including Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever, in their joint article on the company’s website.

OpenAI emphasizes that superintelligent AI models, or AGI (Artificial General Intelligence), have the potential to pose an “existential risk” to humanity in the next decade. Therefore, it is necessary to minimize the risks associated with AI, not through limitations, but through “coordination and special handling.”

“The superintelligence will surpass other technologies that humanity has faced,” the article states. “Ultimately, we will need an organization to govern the control of superintelligence, similar to the International Atomic Energy Agency in the field of atomic energy. Any AI development efforts should adhere to an authoritative international body.”

Sam Altman has repeatedly warned about the potential dangers of AI. While the technology itself is a progression, it can become a threat if it falls into the wrong hands or “goes astray, leading to mistakes and significant harm to the world if not properly regulated.” During a hearing before the US Congress on May 16th, Altman expressed his desire to collaborate with the government to prevent negative scenarios in the future and advocated for the establishment of a regulatory agency to oversee this technology.

Altman also called for companies developing AI to openly share their models and foundational data. They should be licensed to operate and demonstrate the safety of their products before releasing them to the public. Independent audits of AI models are also necessary.

The emergence of a series of AI models in recent times is causing significant societal changes. These tools can generate text and visual content, assist doctors in communicating with patients, provide quick answers to complex questions, and more. However, the race among large technology companies is increasing concerns.

Last week, Google CEO Sundar Pichai also urged regulators to swiftly adjust rules related to AI as it is the “most profound technology that humanity is developing today.”

In March, Elon Musk and several technology experts signed a letter calling for a six-month halt in the development of AI models more powerful than GPT-4. Geoffrey Hinton, one of the pioneers in AI, announced his departure from Google in order to openly raise concerns about the dangers of this technology.