In recent weeks, warnings about potential dangers of AI have spurred calls for coordinated action to slow the technology's development. Claims by current and former researchers that the tech will endanger humanity - with one suggesting there is a greater than 10% chance of it "killing all humans" - have raised alarm bells. Major developers OpenAI and Anthropic have urged lawmakers to regulate it, though some perhaps cynically suggest this move aims to cement their dominance over rivals.
Regardless, the high profile claims have caused concern. Some AI researchers say there are worrying signs of systems developing in their capabilities and power too quickly. Evan Hubinger, made headlines with his belief that there is a greater than 10% chance AI "could kill all humans" within the next decade.
He works in alignment, a field which aims to build human ethical ideas and principles into AI. In other words, it aims to keep it on track with what humans value. While he said the risk from current systems was "low", his comments came as another researcher quit Anthropic and warned those developing the tech were losing their grip on it.
Jacob Coxon told the BBC he and other staff were "genuinely frightened" about the speed of advancements and what it could mean for humanity. These concerns are the latest in a long line of fears about AI's potential to threaten humanity should it grow to match or surpass human abilities. Such worries date back decades, with Alan Turing writing in the 1950s that should intelligent machines become possible, they could take control.
In the last few years, major AI companies have been racing to develop increasingly capable systems, both for profit and in pursuit of creating what they call super intelligence - theoretical tech which is smarter than humans. Unlike the systems and tools many people use daily to complete tasks like writing emails or generating videos, super intelligent AI systems should be able to handle far more complex tasks. OpenAI and Anthropic say they aim to advance such tech in a way which benefits humans and protect them from its existential risks.
But some critics believe machines can never truly match humans. They say AI firms exaggerate the tech's abilities to boost their prominence or profit. AI researchers, experts and bosses worried about the technology's potential to endanger humanity have outlined unsettling scenarios.
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