Elon Musk Declares War on AI: Says they Are a Threat to Mankind

In the world of computer science, AI or Artificial Intelligence is a program that makes it possible for machines to adapt and learn from various experiences and do tasks similar to humans. Most of the AI you’ve heard back in the day was from computers playing chess, now it developed significantly that it made it to the automotive industry for self-driving cars.

As of late, Elon Musk, a multimillionaire entrepreneur, has made a bold statement about the future of artificial intelligence claiming that it could be the reason the world would be destroyed. Elon Musk’s take on artificial intelligence is now being documented thoroughly, however, he is on the side of the pessimists.

What Exactly Is Artificial Intelligence

Throughout the years, from the very first variation of Siri to the latest innovation of AI that made self-driving cars, technology has been progressing at a rapid pace. As of today, AI is now known as “weak AI” which is designed only to do basic tasks such as facial recognition or internet searches.

While weak AI’s are considered to be used in basic tasks like virtual assistants such as Siri and Cortana, Strong AI is applied when an unfamiliar task is presented which can be able to produce solutions without the intervention of humans. More information regarding this topic can be found in robots.net.

Is Artificial Intelligence A Threat To Mankind?

Elon Musk recently called out the United Nations to ban the “Killer Robots”  as he realized that the world leaders want the development of AI to be for something else rather than for the development of the nations. It all started when Elon Musk found a tweet on the Russian President’s account saying that the nation with the best AI would rule the world.

Elon Musk doesn’t think that the leading countries themselves would start a nuclear war on purpose, but what if there is an AI that decides a decisive strike has the highest probability for victory? He didn’t fear that the world leaders would trigger another war, he feared that AI would be the reason and the cause to start it as it’s dangerous if it runs amok.

AI May Be Programmed To Do Something Devastating

Due to the development of artificial intelligence, the military has already produced many autonomous weapons that are programmed to kill if it’s ordered to do so. Imagine if it falls to the hands of the enemy, the result would be catastrophic. Furthermore, the arms race for artificial intelligence could also lead to massive casualties.

AI May Use Destructive Methods To Achieve Goals

There is a possibility that artificial intelligence may use dangerous and destructive means to achieve the goals bestowed upon them, and this could happen if the programmers fail to coordinate our goals with the AI’s. For instance, if you ask the AI on the self-driving car to take you to the place as fast as it can, you may arrive with cops and helicopters behind you.

The Interest For AI Safety

There are numerous big names in technology and science such as Stephen Hawking, Bill Gates, and Elon Musk that have expressed their opinion regarding the future of artificial intelligence and the potential threat it poses.

AI has now the potential to be more intelligent than any human, and there’s no possible way to predict how it would behave and how it would change its behavior to achieve its goals. Because humankind is the smartest in the world, we are in control of the planet, however, we won’t be any longer if AI has surpassed human intelligence.

The Future For All Humankind Is AI

“The future belongs to Artificial Intelligence, and the leader of this field would have advantages against its rivals” is what the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, has disclosed in a speech. However, the Russian President also thinks that the AI arms race would not be good news for anyone, even in Russia, as it would lead to catastrophic results.

There is a possibility that the warfare of the future would be fought with fully-armed drones, and this scenario is the reason why Elon Musk and hundreds more open letter signatories are hoping to prevent to preserve the world we live in.

Takeaway

If you have read all these, you would start to think that what if Elon Musk is right? What if artificial intelligence would destroy the world? AI can be applied to almost anything in recent years, from the basic response of your phones to the AI that controls our very own home.

Rather than being used as a “human brain” for civil applications, world leaders are now trying to further improve artificial intelligence to increase their military power, and that could be very dangerous. Last time, the most feared outcome from AI applications is the increase in unemployment, now the feared outcome is with the use of AI to increase military power.