If anything needs to be regulated more than anything else, it is milk!
The article also mentions washing machines, which I think is a more level comparison. But washing machines can electrocute you, cause a fire or a flood. That kind of risk doesn't exist with AI, unless washing machine manufacturers took a page from Microsoft and sloppified their design I guess.
The AI _corporations_ must be regulated, not the technology itself. But that's not what they're advocating for. Big techs are trying to get a ban on general purpose computing so everyone has to pay them a tax to do anything related to computers. Imagine needing a license (edit: i.e. a special govt permission) to run a local model at home.
When these AI companies claim that AI should be regulated, they usually mean it like a gun, because the owner of a gun can do harm to others. Let's put that aside for now, there is already plenty of debate on this idea.
Here, they mention milk and washing machines, and regulations are intended to protect the consumer from the manufacturer. And what how can an AI company harm their users? They can make their software full of bugs and vulnerabilities, leak private information, etc... nothing AI specific. The more AI-specific part is that they can provide a chatbot that tells you to kill yourself, well, yes, that's a risk, but the same can be said of the web in general. If Microsoft really wanted to have AI regulated in this sense, Windows 11 probably would have to be recalled the same day.
Most people aren't using agents currently and even for those that are, the direct harm is limited to the digital realm. Of course, this could be major, but still, it won't kill you.
Indirect harm, I'll grant. But the user has agency in this instance. If you drink bad milk or your washing machine has faulty wiring, not so much.
If they are planning maidbots or android bots replenishing shelves in shops, or system that have to manage some focal points like electricity or your semaphore system, maybe it is better to have a law before they start to ship this appliances.
They are loading AI pretty much everywhere, even on cars. I can see how some companies will cut testing in the sake of money saving.
I agree milk need more regulation than AI, but this shouldn't be an excuse to not regulate AI adequately.
Both of the topics have their own importance and both of them need good focus to regulate them at the best of our capabilities.
I've not seen anything so far that's remarkably more dangerous than a laundry list of commonly purchased items. Most of what I hear is either some sort of far fetched "the teenagers are going to be bio-engineering designer strains of polio", or some vague fears that the AI will become sentient and kill us all that vaguely reminds me of when the Manhattan Project thought they might cause earth's entire atmosphere to enter runaway fission.
I'm also distrustful because virtually all the experts stand to benefit from convincing us unregulated AI is dangerous. Namely, it's a compelling reason to ban Chinese and open weight models that are eating into their margins. It doesn't mean they're wrong, but it does mean that they'll need to substantiate their claims. I'm not trusting them at face value.
What does Geoff Hinton have to gain?
This is a conspiracy theory FYI.
Imagine the fortune food supply companies will make! “Our lettuce just might poison your child!”
Truly a golden age is near, and you, perceptive geniuses that you all are, will be the only ones not fooled, not for a second, because it all makes sense, always and forever, as long as you squint hard enough to close your eyes.
It's basically Silicon Valley's approach making threats like a mafia boss.
> Listen, friend. Humanity's a beautiful thing. It'd be a shame if something happened to it. Me and my associates, we're trying to build something to change everything, to make everyone's lives better. It'll cure disease, end the need for work, and make everybody rich. Trust me. Of course, there's a chance that it'll kill every last one of you. But see, we're the only ones who understand how dangerous this thing really is. You wouldn't want this tech getting into the wrong hands, would you? That's why we need a little cooperation, kapeesh? I'm talkin' regulations, licenses, safety inspections, lots of expensive things. Things that only me and my associates can afford, if yous all cooperate. Be reasonable. Everything's changing so fast, the smart thing is to act now, cuz you'll wanna be on our side when the future comes. You give us your money, a slice of your 401k, your data, your electricity, your jobs, and some tax incentives to grease the wheels, and we can be sure the reds in China don't take control. So do we have a deal, or do I gotta explain the existential threat to your family again?
Should we be more concerned about malevolent humans using AI to cause harm? Or should we be more worried about misaligned AI agents escaping their sandbox to cause harm? Or should we be more worried about job loss, or the concentration of political power in the hands of a small clique of billionaires?
All of these are real possibilities, but it's hard to put a finger on the actual probabilities. And even if you're identified and quantified these dangers, what should the actual regulatory environment look like?
None of this is to argue that we shouldn't have regulation, just that it's very hard to know ahead of time what the rules should be. It doesn't mean we shouldn't try to regulate, but we need to prepare for a rapidly changing technology landscape.
I tend to favor an open source approach to safety rather than keeping the technology hidden. I'd like to see regulation to mandate that model training and weights be much more open than they are now. But I could be wrong: maybe Dario is right that this should be kept in the dark. The only things I'm fairly certain about is that nobody knows for sure and we're going to need to adjust quickly.
Press, please can we drop this OpenAI whitewash?
Burglaries aten't due to rogue crowbars.
These megacorps are doing their best to make their offerings sound scary, because scary == capable in marketing terms, and scary allows them to set up a regulatory moat preventing anyone from competing with them.
Not a bad metaphor: mostly fine, arguably legitimate benefits [when you're lucky], potentially really bad.
The biggest place the metaphor breaks is that when you drink bad milk, the consequences are local.
Note: this is not an argument that oligopolies or the state should control or have sole access to AI. It is a reflection of that fact that we as a society have no good answer nor even any process towards one, about how to balance the competing goods and risks of widespread access to capable AI.
Trailing company calls for regulation: "They just want time to catch up."