Artificial intelligence may be as dangerous as a nuclear weapon, a leading research scientist says.
Computer scientist and professor Stuart Russell, who does research at the University of California, Berkley, and Cambridge University and is considered a pioneer in smart technology, said that he has concerns that as AI is being so quickly developed that it may lead to humanity "driving off a cliff,"
the UK's Daily Mail is reporting.
One of Russell's fears is that the technology may be used to develop weapons by the military.
As an example, the computer scientist cited developments by Boston Dynamics to create
autonomous robots for the military. Boston Dynamics was acquired by Google in late 2013.
Russell isn't the only scientist who has warned about the potential dangers of artificial intelligence.
Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, architect at Tesla Motors and SolarCity chairman, is also on record warning about the risks associated with AI.
In August, Musk sent out a Tweet saying, "We need to be super careful with AI. Potentially more dangerous than nukes."
Professor Stephen Hawking also voiced concerns about AI in a recent interview with
Science magazine in a feature on the topic.
"From the beginning, the primary interest in nuclear technology was the 'inexhaustible supply of energy,'" Hawking told Science. "The possibility of weapons was also obvious."
"I think there is a reasonable analogy between unlimited amounts of energy and unlimited amounts of intelligence," he said. "Both seem wonderful until one thinks of the possible risks."
"The regulation of nuclear weapons deals with objects and materials, whereas with AI it will be a bewildering variety of software that we cannot yet describe," he added.
"I'm not aware of any large movement calling for regulation either inside or outside AI, because we don't know how to write such regulation."
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