Nobel Physics Prize winner and pioneer in artificial intelligence research, John Hopfield, expressed grave concerns about recent technological advances, warning of a potential catastrophe if not carefully managed.
The Princeton University Professor Emeritus emphasized the need for a deeper understanding of these systems to prevent them from running amok.
In a video address from the UK to an audience at New Jersey University on Tuesday, the 91-year-old scientist reflected on the emergence of two powerful, potentially dangerous technologies during his lifetime: biological engineering and nuclear physics.
“We are accustomed to technologies that aren’t purely good or bad but can go either way,” he stated. “As a physicist, I’m very concerned about something uncontrollable and something I don’t understand well enough to know the boundaries we should impose on this technology.”
He noted that this issue is central to AI. Although modern AI systems seem like absolute marvels, he remarked that their inner workings are still not fully understood, calling it a “very worrying” situation.
“That’s why, like Geoffrey Hinton (another Nobel Laureate in Physics), I emphasize the need for a better understanding,” Hopfield said, predicting that capabilities beyond what we can currently imagine may soon emerge in this field.
Some fear that the rapid rise of AI and the competitive race among companies could lead to its development at a pace faster than scientists can fully grasp.
Hopfield voiced concerns that developing this technology might lead to something spontaneous but unwanted.
He cited the example of Ice-Nine, a fictional substance invented by science fiction author Kurt Vonnegut in his 1963 book Cat’s Cradle. Designed to aid soldiers navigating muddy terrain, it accidentally causes oceans to freeze, leading to the collapse of human civilization.
Hopfield concluded, “I worry about anything that effectively says, ‘I am faster, I am bigger than you.’”
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