Artificial Intelligence Could Replace 80% of Human Jobs - But That's a Good Thing, Says AI Guru Ben Goertzel

Key Highlights :

1. AI could replace 80 percent of human jobs in the coming years, but that's a good thing.

2. Mathematician, cognitive scientist and famed robot-creator Ben Goertzel is founder and chief executive of SingularityNET, a research group he launched to create "Artificial General Intelligence," or AGI -- artificial intelligence with human cognitive abilities.

3. With his long hair and leopard-print cowboy hat, Goertzel was in provocateur mode last week at Web Summit in Rio de Janeiro, the world's biggest annual technology conference, where he told AFP in an interview that AGI is just years away and spoke out against recent efforts to curb artificial intelligence research.

4. Q: How far are we from artificial intelligence with human cognitive abilities? "If we want machines to really be as smart as people and to be as agile in dealing with the unknown, then they need to be able to take big leaps beyond their training and programming. And we're not there yet. But I think there's reason to believe we're years rather than decades from getting there."

5. What do you think of the debate around AI such as ChatGPT and its risks? Should there be a six-month research pause, as some people are advocating? "I don't think we should pause it because it's like a dangerous superhuman AI... These are very interesting AI systems, but they're not capable of becoming like human level general intelligences, because they can't do complex multi-stage reasoning, like you need to do science. They can't invent wild new things outside the scope of their training data.

6. They can also spread misinformation, and people are saying we should pause them because of this. That's very weird to me. Why haven't we banned the internet? The internet does exactly this. It gives you way more information at your fingertips. And it spreads bullshit and misinformation.

7. I think we should have a free society. And just like the internet shouldn't be banned, we shouldn't ban this.

8. Isn't their potential to replace people's jobs a threat? "You could probably obsolete maybe 80 percent of jobs that people do, without having an AGI, by my guess. Not with ChatGPT exactly as a product. But with systems of that nature, which are going to follow in the next few years."

9. What regulation do we need for AI to have a positive impact? "What you need is society to be developing these AIs to do good things. And the governance of the AIs to be somehow participatory among the population. All these things are technically possible. The problem is that the companies funding most of the AI research don't care about doing good things. They care about maximizing shareholder value."

     As technology continues to advance, the possibility that artificial intelligence (AI) could replace human jobs in the coming years is becoming more and more real. However, according to US-Brazilian researcher Ben Goertzel, a leading AI guru, this could be a good thing. Goertzel, who is the founder and chief executive of SingularityNET, has been working on creating “Artificial General Intelligence” (AGI), which is artificial intelligence with human cognitive abilities.

     At the Web Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Goertzel spoke out against recent efforts to curb artificial intelligence research and shared his views on the debate around AI and its risks. When asked how far we are from artificial intelligence with human cognitive abilities, Goertzel said, “If we want machines to really be as smart as people and to be as agile in dealing with the unknown, then they need to be able to take big leaps beyond their training and programming. And we're not there yet. But I think there's reason to believe we're years rather than decades from getting there.”

     Goertzel also addressed the potential of AI to replace people’s jobs. He said, “You could probably obsolete maybe 80 percent of jobs that people do, without having an AGI, by my guess. Not with ChatGPT exactly as a product. But with systems of that nature, which are going to follow in the next few years. I don't think it's a threat. I think it's a benefit. People can find better things to do with their life than work for a living... Pretty much every job involving paperwork should be automatable.”

     Goertzel believes that robots can do a lot of good for society today, and that their potential will only increase if AGI is achieved. He pointed to Grace, a robot nurse showcased at Web Summit Rio, as an example of how robots can help improve people's lives. Goertzel said, “In the US, a lot of elderly people are sitting lonely in old folks' homes. And they're not bad in terms of physical condition -- you have medical care and food and big-screen TV -- but they're bad in terms of emotional and social support. So if you inject humanoid robots into it, that will answer your questions, listen to your stories, help you place a call with your kids or order something online, then you're improving people's lives. Once you get to an AGI, they'll be even better companions.”

     When asked about the regulation needed for AI to have a positive impact, Goertzel said, “What you need is society to be developing these AIs to do good things. And the governance of the AIs to be somehow participatory among the population. All these things are technically possible. The problem is that the companies funding most of the AI research don't care about doing good things. They care about maximizing shareholder value.”

     In conclusion, AI could potentially replace 80 percent of human jobs in the coming years, but Ben Goertzel believes that this could be a good thing. AI can already do a lot of good for society today, and if AGI is achieved, their potential could be even greater. The key is to ensure that AI is developed to do good things, and that the governance of the AIs is participatory among the population.

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