AI A Bigger Threat Than North Korea Says Elon Musk

Tesla and SpaceX boss says Artificial Intelligence (AI) could lead to third world war.

Billionaire and serial entrepreneur, Elon Musk, has warned that the most probable result of an international military artificial intelligence race is more likely to cause World War III than any real conceivable conventional threat such as North Korea and its leader’s own apparent desire to start a global conflict.

“China, Russia, soon all countries w strong computer science. Competition for AI superiority at national level most likely cause of WW3 imo,” tweeted Musk. It has not been clarified if he was working late or couldn’t get to sleep for worrying.

If and when AI causes World War 3, Elon Musk hopes that humans will have an outpost on Mars. Seriously.

AI: opportunity and threat

Musk’s recent tweet, it seems was prompted by a statement from Russian president, Vladimir Putin that said  “artificial intelligence is the future, not only for Russia, but for all humankind … It comes with colossal opportunities, but also threats that are difficult to predict. Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will become the ruler of the world.”

Musk’s fears have not come out of nowhere. He has been a vocal voice for limiting the pursuit of AI in recent years, especially for the military. In August, Musk also specifically tweeted that artificial intelligence poses “vastly more risk than North Korea.” 

Skynet

Musk was also one of 116 signatories of an open letter last month written by experts on AI, that called for the United Nations to unilaterally ban the development of AI controlled weapon platforms:

“Once developed, lethal autonomous weapons will permit armed conflict to be fought at a scale greater than ever, and at time-scales faster than humans can comprehend,” the letter read. “These can be weapons of terror, weapons that despots and terrorists use against innocent populations, and weapons hacked to behave in undesirable ways.”

Time will tell…

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