Enlarge / An AI-generated picture of “actual house invaders” threatening the earth.
In response to a Reuters/Ipsos ballot revealed on Wednesday, a majority of Individuals imagine that the rise of synthetic intelligence know-how may put humanity’s future in jeopardy. The ballot, carried out from Could 9 to Could 15 amongst 4,415 US adults, discovered that over two-thirds of respondents are anxious concerning the opposed results of AI, whereas 61 p.c think about it a possible risk to civilization. The ballot has a credibility interval of plus or minus two share factors.
The growth of generative AI use in varied fields, fueled partly by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, has set off a know-how hype race amongst tech giants equivalent to Microsoft and Google, which stand to profit from having one thing new and buzzy to doubtlessly enhance their share costs. Nevertheless, fears about AI have been rising as a result of high-profile occasions such because the “AI pause” letter and Geoffery Hinton’s resignation from Google.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman just lately testified earlier than US Congress expressing his considerations concerning the potential misuse of AI know-how and calling for regulation that critics say could assist his agency retain its technological lead and suppress competitors. Lawmakers appear to share a few of these considerations, with Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) observing, “There’s no method to put this genie within the bottle. Globally, that is exploding.”
Regardless of the prevalent use of AI in on a regular basis life, there’s a political and spiritual divide in perceptions of AI. The ballot revealed that 70 p.c of Donald Trump voters expressed larger concern about AI versus solely 60 p.c of Joe Biden voters. Evangelical Christians have been extra prone to “strongly agree” that AI poses dangers to human civilization, at 32 p.c, in comparison with 24 p.c of non-evangelical Christians.
The ballot outcomes point out that Individuals’ fears over AI’s potential hurt far outweigh optimism about its advantages. AI researchers, nevertheless, recommend that the concern about an AI-powered apocalypse could also be misguided, and that as an alternative of specializing in hypothetical eventualities, transparency, accountability, and stopping exploitative labor practices needs to be prioritized.
General, the ballot raises necessary questions concerning the public’s understanding and notion of AI, particularly given the nebulous nature of the time period. Whereas Individuals could not understand how prevalent AI already is of their every day lives, it’s evident that many imagine it poses dangers to humanity.
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