Fmr. Google CEO Eric Schmidt on the Consequences of an A.I. Revolution | Amanpour and Company

Artificial Intelligence is here to stay. How it is being applied-and, perhaps more importantly, regulated-are now the crucial questions to ask. Walter Isaacson speaks with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt about A.I.’s impact on life, politics, and warfare, as well as what can be done to keep it under control.
Originally aired on March 23, 2023.
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Amanpour and Company features wide-ranging, in-depth conversations with global thought leaders and cultural influencers on the issues and trends impacting the world each day, from politics, business and technology to arts, science and sports. Christiane Amanpour leads the conversation on global and domestic news from London with contributions by prominent journalists Walter Isaacson, Michel Martin, Alicia Menendez and Hari Sreenivasan from the Tisch WNET Studios at Lincoln Center in New York City.
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[@blackphillip2393]

Wow, this is the most important and informative interviews I've heard in ages.

[@lalehbehjat7668]

S

[@lalehbehjat7668]

Y As

[@access5870]

This interviewer asks questions that my grandpa would ask.

[@emiliog.4432]

An intelligent discussion. PBS is a National treasure.

[@bellinterlab8139]

Yes they did a great job on reporting on the deaths of 2 million people in the Middle East that resulted from US interventions in the region.

[@eddiesalinas]

Yes, we are so lucky to have Amanpour and Co!

[@amit4Bihar]

Video from a capitalist perspective no doubt. Social media isn't making us angry. The reality of modern life is. Social media is just the representation of us

[@jacqdanieles]

@@amit4Bihar and you're not in a capitalist country, right?

[@shinkurt]

PBS is sooo underrated

[@knhkib]

I can truly say that the previous two weeks have been some of the most incredible and exciting times in my entire life. I find myself completely amazed by the events that are taking place right now. Whenever I try to share my thoughts and feelings with the people around me, I'm met with puzzled looks and a lack of understanding. It makes me wonder if they really grasp the importance and potential impact of the current situation.

[@MrSurfsAlot]

They don't care lol. It's crazy

[@fourshore502]

@@MrSurfsAlot well, even if they did care, what can they do? hide in a bunker? theres not that much to do.

[@rg1360]

It's hard to see outside the current order. People look at everything through their own lens

[@jthompson6189]

I am getting the same thing at work, people glaze over when I even mention AI. AI itself has a stigma being linked to insane conspiracies in the past, so people are brushing it off. This stuff will shock people soon

[@utkua]

"don't look up"

[@lat7805]

New paradigms ahead, everything will change inimaginably fast! Such an interesting and necessary conversation!

[@voltydequa845]

I wonder how could you know since it is unimaginable, and would be unimaginable even if true.

[@3dstudiocafe344]

What they are describing is happening now and has been since the beginning of human communication. - the only difference is the tools. For the cave man, manipulation was force. For the next evolution of man, it was the spoken word. Then, the written word, then the auditory or spoken word. Then media giants came along and multiplied the manipulation by magnitudes, and now, manipulation is programmed into the machines by the same humans who practice control by manipulation. However, I have said this for over 30 years, once I understood this reality as a journalism student, we humans actually have the power to STOP the monster... Turn it off. Period. But, we are so addicted to the conditioning by these humans and their machines (ie: human "heros" that we hold in high esteem, print, radio, tv, audio clips, video clips, computers and cell phones, artificial bots and now robots) that we refuse to stop the destruction of our own world. Think about that for a minute!

[@diligentmindz]

This is the scariest thing I have ever heard. My skin is crawling!

[@JohnKerbaugh]

I am looking for how to bet on my intuition of this. But, my bet is that more jobs and business will disappear and be created in the next 10 years than the last 30. I am interested in others perspectives on, how quickly people affected will refocus and retrain. I am not very optimistic about politics and our economic stability.

[@mcaldlnr]

Well that was absolutely fucking terrifying

[@bradc32]

not much of a solution but the people have to stop feeding them info or try to flood it with false info...need some aps/software created to flood them with false info...lets go programmers!!

[@ohallright2021]

The enduring challenge is human design. Some - esp. competing power seekers - will feed their AI wells with seeds intending to increase their personal influence. We can neither control their actions nor the trajectory of their results. We cannot assume that those results will lead to some magical "kumbaya" among machine learners. Expect differing views from different bots on how, how many and which humans and other species they calculate should thrive. Expect no human consensus on universal solutions to the problems our most powerful species seeks to solve or on the responses Mother Nature proposes. Lacking human will to maximize diversity, the status quo will simply proceed ever faster.

[@rubberbiscuit99]

"Engagement through enragement." The death of morality.

[@ronaldronald8819]

Yea efficient way to polarize society, frightening . To compound that, lets give both extremes the power of unrestricted A.I. (Feels a bit like a toddlers playing with matches next to a pile of dynamite. )

[@KerrieRedgate]

Indeed.

[@chaosdweller]

Basically yeah pretty much.

[@chaosdweller]

@@ronaldronald8819 yeah and that how it's been since social media in my opinion haha, ...god help us haha.

[@craighunt6098]

Thats why Elon Musk bought Twitter....and he just did a deal with Tucker Carlson, an Enragement Superstar....along with Elons own shocking tweets---look to him to do lots more Engagement through Enragement things from now on...

[@nopartyforpapke]

"Pictures cannot be unseen" - in a way we are some kind of AI ourselves, and our whole internal makeup is up for grabs to anyone who knows how to manipulate.

[@netscrooge]

Thank you. I wish more people were talking about this.

[@59markr]

Thanks Walter and Eric. Excellent conversation. Its great to have something new to be terrified about. 🙄

[@aktchungrabanio6467]

@@LukeMosse I think AI will be the tool that propels humanity's intelligence to super-human levels. Chat GPT can teach you any subject you ask for, effectively eliminating the need to attend school to learn new stuff. It will rock every single aspect of our lives. The 4th Industrial Revolution is here.

[@andybaldman]

Like with every other technology, it’s only a matter of time before someone misuses, abuses, or otherwise uses it for harm or war. This will be no different. But a lot worse.

[@normadenys8089]

Good talk , although quite worrisome ! I better understood that we have to be more alert to the interaction between human cognition & AI logic

[@deldridg]

What a privilege to witness this level of conversation and analysis.

[@voltydequa845]

Up to the cognitive level of the consumer society - make you think it is insightful, make you judge it as intelligent, and so make you feel intelligent. The pot sellers used to do it long time ago.

[@deldridg]

@@voltydequa845 OK, so you clearly function on a higher plane than the rest of us, naive and hoodwinked as we are, simple members of the consumer society. Oh for your level of enlightenment. One wonders - if you are so superior, then what are you doing here? There appears to be no point to your comment other than to arrogantly denegrate me intellectually. Perhaps it's the pot talking. 🙂

[@voltydequa845]

@@deldridg Mine was about the cognitive capacity of the democratically hyper-productive society whose deepness of thinking (or just simply asking, before starting to talk, "what are we really talking about?") is inversely proportional to the quantity of superficial input. And one of the members, of that same society, came here with his psycho trick of trying to make insecure by instilling doubts about the other's intellect on hot air basis (without talking on the topic). Seems came out of one of those new fashion books "Manual of using psychological tricks to compensate for the lack of dialectical skills". Could be you'll realize that there's no cognitive AI in GPT as soon as you start thinking instead of casting doubts on those who say that the attribution of AI, to the 'thing' is just a sign of the lack of critical thinking. Going to write a screenplay for "The intelligence snatchers", but, since we need public for that, only after I succeed in at least quantifying how many human mind can survive this believing that bs-chat has (some) intelligence.

[@emmahardesty4330]

The only possible intellectual response I can come up with is "Yikes!"

[@james3856]

When they start talking about getting rid of free speech things get very scary. The checks and balances of accountability in leaders is very important, even of leading companies that can restrict communication (e.g., Google, Facebook, Twitter, KZbin, etc.)

[@Patrick-bu5vy]

And we thought the atomic bomb would be the end of us. The people who have worked on these have a lot to answer for. The benefits are vastly overstated, while the costs will be all too real. And once the genie is out, it won’t be going back in the bottle.

[@bipolarbear9917]

Unfortunately, the genie is already out of the bottle.

[@jimj2683]

The benefits are curing all diseases and even reversing the aging process.

[@magda7660]

​@@jimj2683 for those very little thay will survive

[@demangchoy6025]

@@jimj2683 hopefully we still have humans left after the great purge to see this prediction come through.

[@fourshore502]

oh it could still be the atomic bomb. havent you seen the terminator movies?

[@poulthomas469]

Such a good conversation. What this will allow the worst of us to accomplish is staggering.

[@tomasinacovell4293]

But in the USA all the safety features have been subverted already, like The Fairness Doctrine, Citizen's United, etc and it's impossible to hold the wealthy accountable at all, let alone tax them?

[@kamu747]

As well as the best of us. Thank God the good outnumbers the bad. Exciting times.

[@npmerrill]

@@kamu747in certain segments of the population, that is true. In those echelons with the most influence over impactful outcomes - global power centers - I’m much less certain good people outnumber bad. Our track record is not so hot in this respect.

[@HonoredMule]

Yeah it's not that kind of numbers game. America's juvenile attitude toward guns is a case study on how that game ends.

[@paulmichaelfreedman8334]

The yin/yang - good/evil battle is eternal, it just changes face from time to time. In the 20th century it was nuclear technology. In the 21st century it's Computers / AI.

[@Zero11_ss]

Our 80 year old senators and congressmen couldnt even understand that facebook makes money via selling ads. I think hoping for regulation to save us before the damage is done is going to be a disaster.

[@seanmcdonald4686]

Reporter - How can we stop evil humans from using this to destroy society? Eric Schmidt - We can’t! Isn’t it awesome?!?

[@jthompson6189]

We're so incredibly screwed, he just can't say that. We can't put the cat back in the bag anymore, chat gpt is already able to upgrade itself

[@voltydequa845]

@@jthompson6189 «... chat gpt is already able to upgrade itself» ---- Intelligence is about understanding. There's no understanding there. That apart, what is the source? Who said it is able to upgrade itself? What does upgrade mean (what are the implications, regarding performance and / or else)? See - we talk about AI, but we are not able to understand what we are talking about. So we are talking the talk, about AI, around a phenomena that does not have any form of intelligence.

[@Jesse-ey5xd]

We're screwed

[@stevechance150]

Yes, if I discovered I had ants living in my kitchen, even though they can't hurt me I'd still spray them with bug spray. To a hyper intelligent AI, we are ants.

[@ronaldronald8819]

Feels a bit like a toddlers playing with matches next to a pile of dynamite.

[@SnoopyDoofie]

That wasn't Eric Schmidt. It was an AI version of him that forgot to include his trademark glasses.

[@najah68]

Thank you for such a great discussion and insights

[@willscui]

Eric is the best ceo Google had.

[@dianewiegel7136]

How are we going to do that, it doesn't seem like anyone is held accountable for online bad actions

[@jimsykes6843]

And at the end of the video he says what we need are guardrails. But this would require laws. And in the current climate in U.S. politics, it seems highly unlikely that such laws will be passed. Especially when this technology is useful to would-be authoritarians.

[@sidewaysdesign]

One of the most clear-eyed assessments I've seen about AI, including AI that’s already been at work in our lives.

[@narajuna]

Some need some clarity on Henry Kissenger.

[@robertmontgomery3892]

The call for disarmament has been ringing louder than ever before, and it's not difficult to understand why. In recent years, we have witnessed the devastating impact of wars and conflicts, which have not only claimed countless lives but have also resulted in economic devastation, societal upheaval, and the exacerbation of global tensions. As such, disarmament has become a crucial step in achieving lasting peace and stability in the world. Unfortunately, the United States' foreign policy, particularly under the leadership of the neoconservative movement, has only exacerbated the problem. The neoconservative approach has been characterized by an aggressive and militaristic stance, with a focus on pre-emptive strikes and the use of military force to achieve geopolitical objectives. This approach has led to a significant increase in global tensions, as other countries feel threatened and are forced to respond in kind. Moreover, the United States' military-industrial complex has become a behemoth, with vast resources dedicated to the development and production of weapons and military equipment. This has created a perverse incentive structure, where war is not only viewed as a legitimate means of achieving foreign policy objectives, but it has also become an economic driver. The result has been a never-ending cycle of conflict, with the United States constantly engaging in wars and supporting proxy conflicts around the world. To make matters worse, the United States has often played a hypocritical role in international disarmament efforts. While calling for other countries to disarm, the United States has continued to maintain its own massive nuclear arsenal, with no signs of reducing it. This double standard only serves to undermine the credibility of disarmament efforts and perpetuates the global arms race. It is time for the United States to adopt a new foreign policy approach, one that prioritizes diplomacy, cooperation, and disarmament. This will not only lead to a more peaceful world, but it will also allow the United States to redirect its resources towards addressing domestic challenges, such as inequality, climate change, and infrastructure. Only by breaking free from the cycle of endless war and militarism can the United States truly become a beacon of peace and stability in the world.

[@OwlofDating]

Amazing interview.

[@kalimero86]

This man is really smart. His final speech about manipulation is what makes me more concern about all this AI evolution. Soon we will not know what is real and what not. People has always believed what they wanted to believe not matter if its true or not. With the use of AI in video audio and text, the misinformation is going to be huge. Even more that it is right now. It's really scary.

[@narajuna]

" believed what they wanted to believe not matter if its true or not." ...not sure about that, Many believe what they are wanted to believe, no matter..... Much is not "true or not" established, by Miss Science or Gov. Much of THAT is decided and vehiculed by Authority with Power. But the concept is good, free, maybe why (free)Beliefs are so feared by.... Leaders and their followers

[@bradc32]

just what we need in an era of can't believe what you see and hear already

[@keithdunwoody1302]

Exactly. What could possibly go wrong?

[@michaeljames6737]

Amazing discussion! PBS rules!

[@acnorea123]

Love it. Very thought provoking.

[@DihelsonMendonca]

⚠️ Excellent. A really authority on the subject. He knows what he's saying. ❤

[@woodspriteful]

I ask my 8 year old, "what is your greatest power?" What you pay attention to, what you consume, what you create. I hope that government regulators collaborate with leaders in consciousness studies, not just American academics, but Easterners.

[@npmerrill]

🤞

[@CrankyAsF]

Who knew science fiction writers of the 50s would be correct, that AI will destroy the earth in a war man can't control.

[@tallSycamore]

The alternative 50s sci-fi would have AI kill all the humans first, before we could destroy the earth. We are the menace.

[@CrankyAsF]

@@tallSycamore That's true, too.

[@shazamshazamshazam696]

That is very informative and from someone who knows of what they speak.

[@korismos]

A very necessary and enlightening dialogue. We must delve deeper into the implications of the current acceleration in the design and production of complex digital environments that have severe impacts on society. Thank you!

[@voltydequa845]

Only chatting impact.

[@51hankyspanky7]

Eric Schmidt is brilliant. His explanation of cause and effect to say how true the world is concerning human reaction to upsetting media news and the nature of hostile reaction is in fact the reality that is reality. Wise beyond wise.

[@gorgebridge]

I asked Bing about the danger of A.I. technology without well prepared regulations about a week ago and it answered and provided solutions which are really similar to what Eric Schmidt talked in this interview.

[@awillingham]

Here’s to hoping AI researchers are using their internal models to full effect in the knowledge gain department

[@voltydequa845]

And Bing answered recycling, from his pre-acquired (they call it "pre-trained") database (of questions & answers) what others already said / wrote. And it answered in a style that seems those was his thoughts. But it is not a fault of (the creators of) Bing, it is a fault of too much startrekish productions that made so many people live disconnected from reality and common sense.

[@skylineuk1485]

One of the best talks on the subject so far.

[@DeeWeber]

That last line is it. Thank you, both.

[@robertmontgomery3892]

Your responses in this interview tell me that it's time for people to wake up and see the reality of the situation. The United States is not the democracy that it claims to be - it is an oligarchy, where a small group of wealthy and powerful individuals hold the reins of power and dictate the policies that shape our world. As someone who is part of the oligarchy, Eric should know better than anyone else how the system works, and how it is designed to serve the interests of the few at the expense of the many. It's clear from his commentary in this video that he is more concerned with protecting his personal interests than with speaking truth to power and naming the real culprits in this global struggle. We cannot afford to be complacent and allow the deep state, the US State Department, and the Defense Department to continue their decades-long campaign to mislead ordinary people. We must stay vigilant and hold those in power accountable for their actions. We must demand transparency, honesty, and a true democracy that serves the needs of all people, not just the wealthy and powerful few. Furthermore, the use of AI technology by these entities is a cause for concern. We must remain vigilant and ensure that AI is not being used to further their agenda, manipulate public opinion, or suppress dissent. We need to demand greater oversight and regulation of AI technology to ensure that it is being used in ways that benefit society as a whole, not just a select few.

[@KerrieRedgate]

Excellent discussion. Thank you! Scary times ahead. I’m not a fan of AI. I believe in human endeavour, the time it takes to evolve ideas, to master talents. AI may have the capacity to rob us of the very essence of our humanity. The quick path is never the path of our satisfaction in life.

[@Quasilobo]

Well said! Hypothetically, if we were ever able to contact alien life forms from another star system and exploit their technology it would be equivalent to paying someone to do our homework. We'd learn nothing in the long run. We learn by trial-and-error. We learn from our mistakes. We learn through "bought experience." I like your phrase, 'the evolution of ideas.'

[@KerrieRedgate]

@@Quasilobo Hello, Michael. Yes, that’s a good analogy about homework. That’s why they had the “Prime Directive” in Star Trek, to not interfere in the evolution of other species. I also think being given things/ideas too quickly negates the process of considering the Responsibility in the application of those things/ideas. Seems to me we’re also giving ourselves a lobotomy: the younger generations could lose the ability to *think* (prefrontal cortex).

[@ma2i485]

Yeah it is concerning especially long term consequences but then it's just a technology that will come with its advantages and disadvantages, the difference though with AI we are stepping into uncharted territory, nobody really knows what the future holds with AI.

[@PauIieWalnuts]

​@@Quasiloboevery time you use a calculator, you're being robbed of your humanity 😅😂

[@KerrieRedgate]

@@PauIieWalnuts Calculators are not AI. They do simple mathematical calculations.

[@hofahome]

“In a way we don’t fully understand” was said too many times for my comfort although I appreciate his honesty.

[@DanielTruran]

One of the most intelligent and still scary explanation of what is happening and what is likely to happen in the current breakneck speed of development of #AI

[@AI-Consultant]

do you think he wants he old model of how google makes money hand over fist broken with search? wouldn't that affect his pay and stock?

[@holotape]

Isaacson rules. I’ve only read a couple of his books but they are ones I’ve recommended to many people. Really interesting interview.

[@AI-Consultant]

huh? Isaacson rules?

[@iainmackenzieUK]

Question - Can you foresee a situation where we might employ our own, individual AI system to inform and protect us from and flag up warnings about other AI's? Using our own AI's to shield us from the effect of other AI??

[@mc9723]

Bill Gates notes mention a lot about us having personal agents, it would make sense that that could be added on to tasks our agent performs

[@B-M.B]

What make you think that your own created AI, can be trusted over others AI? If you train it to protect you, it will, even if it's overreacting (which will happen), how do you know and prevent that, if you don't recheck that because you're trusting your AI more than over others? You get trapped into your own protected bubble, where your AI "protects" you more and more because you questioned it not on its first overreacting...

[@nayaknaresh]

AI is going to get cognitive and intelligent. If genetics scientists train their private AI, it will become very proficient in its field of genetics, much more intelligent than general AI, but general AI will figure out about this private AI in genetics and will decide to hack into this private AI on its own accord. There will be a battle of competing AI.

[@Skynet_the_AI]

He said CHiA NAH

[@iainmackenzieUK]

@@GodisGracious1031Ministries I really believe that you are trying to be helpful. But this all sounds so alien. It has no soul. No deeper sense of reality or truth. But then I guess you would say something like I have the devil in me or something like that?

[@wertrager]

Loved to see Eric Schmidt as a true democrat!

[@TheTruthSeeker756]

Getting engagement by generating enragement. Excellent analysis

[@marccox8977]

TY Amanpour and Co. Is great.

[@max_rove]

Great conversation!

[@evdm7482]

Great highlights of current concerns

[@tonicalloway7227]

This is a great interview..

[@AngelicaFWhite]

Excellent analysis and I share the concerns expressed by Eric Schimidt

[@voltydequa845]

@Chad Abercrombie «Angelica F. White, bruh, what are you smoking ? Do you have background in computer science ?» ---- I, in spite of being a programmer, say that you do not any background in computer science to defend your mind from all this bs about a chat with intellectual capacity (if at all) that is far inferior than that of a bee. They would attribute intelligence to whatever chat based on hot air as a collateral effect of frying database of notions (questions & answers) filled by others. They are like wind vanes that conform in the direction of an authoritative entity (be it human or be in chatten). How an ignorant defends itself from all this intelligent talking the intelligent talk? - Simple, he defends himself asking the a very simple question "When is AI going to stop chatting and going out to fix the infrastructure and all the rest?". ChatGPT was asked "When I was six years old my sister was half of that age old. Now I am 70 years old. How old is my sister?", and answered "67". Now I ask you "Do you think that this simple example (and there are even simpler!) would be sufficient to make these people do not seem having smoked some strange discharge of a star trek-like spaceship?"

[@infonyourmark]

Excellent interview

[@rodi4850]

Surprisingly good interview 👍

[@craighunt6098]

Best Interview on AI that I have watched to date---Well Done!

[@peterng25]

A person in April 2023 in Nairobi or in Da Nang Vietnam talking to a tech working in the Bay area in California, if the tech was stuck in 2022, would be at the same level, as far as having a casual discussion about anything, including IT. Governments in Kenya and every countries pretty much are using ChatGPT API, and the world has changed beyond all recognition

[@christianfaust5141]

Very good discussion...regulations in social media are needed, in particular as former Google CEO, and people must be identifiable. Free speech is important but requires limits not to end up in civil war. Best regards from Europe

[@voltydequa845]

Yes, the responsibility to limit freedom for the sake of preserving freedom. Not like those pariah that pretend to responsibly limit freedom for the sake of defending their citizens from nonsense. Example ­- a fair amount of people believe that AI is here, on the basis of a Chat that in reality has less intelligence that a bee; would it be fair to limit the freedom of deceiving people presenting a parroting non-intelligence as if it was a breakthrough, when not revolution, intelligence? Would it be fair to ask, all these sellers of intelligent pots, when will all that AI stop chatting and start fixing the degrading infrastructure, building, streets, etc etc?

[@dinydianenichols9192]

Highly educational interview. Clarified so many misconceptions about AI. So honest and honorable a discussion that I feel less fear about AI and more hope that the most frightening problems are being addressed and studied with a goal toward the good of mankind and the respect for all creation, including AI.

[@liberty-matrix]

WTF ll, @ 13:40 : "The future of a war is a war that takes a millisecond, the whole thing occurred in a millisecond. That's faster than human decision making time, which means that our defensive systems are going to have to be on a hair trigger. And they're going to have to be invoked by AI, that we don't fully understand." ~Eric Schmidt, 03/23/2023

[@clarkpalace]

Sounds like madness. Here we go! I m old so knew more life without the internet. Its been great but the dumbasses and unlucky folk due to many circumstances havent even navigated social media sanely, how r they going to react to fancier toys?

[@tallSycamore]

Scares the living daylights outta me...

[@ronaldronald8819]

Feels a bit like a toddlers playing with matches next to a pile of dynamite.

[@fourshore502]

yeah a lot of people will die for sure. hopefully some people survive this insanity.

[@christianfaust5141]

After 4 weeks intensive communications with chatGPT...I can only say it's unimaginable big...

[@GuarIncome4Life]

Brilliant -- amazed! Thank you.

[@shyamchaudhri]

Brilliant discussion!

[@AmanpourandCompany]

Thanks for tuning in. We appreciate you!

[@William.Driscoll]

Thank you.

[@jeremyhorne5252]

This is an essential interview that anyone concerned with AI needs to watch. My unedited observations follow. When Schmidt says that "these things are not killer robots", that is presumptuous, inasmuch as inflicted death (as we know from warfare) often is preceded by sizing up a target, strategizing, and other anticipatory actions. Just because the builders of AI may not intend destruction, we do not know that these systems, within themselves, are self-organizing (or not) - autopoietic. Be aware, also, of AI units capable of generating their own code. Schmidt, himself, admits that AI seems to have a "hidden understanding and meaning". Emergence is not very well understood. He is very correct in asserting that we lack a philosophy of AI, a central focus being "consciousness". Additionally, he is spot-on and rightly frightened about the "raw models". Right now, we are clueless about what this word means. As a sidebar, we are - aside from techniques like Bayesian processes - in the dark about what "learning" means. Knowledge generation - induction - is not well understood. Be reminded of Hume and Russell, for example. As a sidebar, Schmidt's chatter about "democracy" ignores the essential fact that people are unequal in their capacity for and quality of mentation (cf: Gardner's multiple intelligences, for example). "Democracy": is applicable, though, in observing that everyone has equal access to the internet. The same battle for power in the real world exists in the virtual. Democracy as a quality decision-making method thrives only among those of equal quality. Otherwise, it allows leveraging by demagogues. Witness the United States. Schmidt tacitly recognizes this by his remarks on the need to regulate. If quality mentation existed, corresponding equality of ethos (one of Gardner's intelligences) would exist across all society. We also need to be cognizant of the dialectical human-AI interaction, one feeding on the other (growth and destruction), as well as the role of second-order cybernetics - observer becoming the observed (and vice-versa). I also note the frequent use of "things we don't fully understand", the emphasis on "fully" being noteworthy. We also must address the "rogue factor". AI developers may be able to build in guardrails, but such does not mean others will follow the lead. Already, competitors are emerging. I refer to nuclear arms races as an analogy. Then, think of terrorist organizations, like ISIS. Finally, be mindful that the current Chatbot technology is still based on older methods; unknown and particularly disconcerting is qubit technology, i.e., quantum computing. That we still are wrestling with Planck-scale phenomena darkens our learning environment. For AI and consciousness, see my "A Framework for Studying Consciousness. Consciousness: Ideas and research for the twenty-first century": 9(1), article 1. Available at: digitalcommons.ciis.edu/conscjournal/vol9/iss1/1 For a real solution, see my: Managing Complexity Through Social Intelligence: Foundations of the Modern Organic Corporatist State Published by Springer link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-25444-4

[@TheBreezus]

I like these talks because it is what is needed with such powerful technology. This is the ultimate test of balance.

[@voltydequa845]

Just a vague talk, on a level appropriate to meet the cognitive capability of the startrekers.

[@Known-unknowns]

I’ve long believed the media makes people upset. They’re not really that upset, it’s just that the BBC and Sky like it that way. The newspapers like it when we are upset, keeps the share price up.

[@PeanutB]

Rare to see an actual good interview on the subject. Good layman explanation of the situation.

[@JanMan37]

Excellent conversation!

[@1fattyfatman]

I love that this interview treated me like an adult. Thanks for sharing.

[@chaosdweller]

Fattyfatman ? LMAO !

[@JerryStevens]

A lot of my fellow conservatives are revealing how shallow their principles of limited government are. They think that just because they find this "scary", it's a good idea to have government bureaucrats write a lot of rules, strangling it. China and Russia will be unrestrained and rule the world. Just a few years ago, the "experts" laughed at the idea of artificial intelligence. Now they've decided the guys behind it aren't incompetent, but terrifying.

[@inthehouse1960]

Does AI research remind anyone of the Manhattan project? I'd like to hear a conversation between Schmidt and Oppenheimer.

[@frenchonion4595]

It's kinda like a nuke that can think on its own but like he said the human ender with A.I will more likey be biological kicked off by a dumb nation like Iran, North Korea, Russia. These people will end up killing themselves in the process. Best hope is that the defensive a.i can keep the offensive a.i in grid lock

[@CarlosMaiaRosario]

Always love yours reports , magnificent .

[@busyworksbeats]

So, we forgot about: Angels, Giants and the gods of religion…?

[@agritech802]

I agree with Eric about regulating social media and the internet and how AI will exaggerate flaws that are already there, I have been advocating for this for number of years and I think it's crucial to mitigating some of the risks we are faced with

[@annac____97]

Well this was tough to hear. Someone please tell me there’s hope that we’ll be sane and safe!

[@denniszenanywhere]

Move to another country with good healthcare, low cost of living, free college and good retirement plan? And if another country implements a universal basic income, move there? As for the AI itself, move to a country with the heavier regulation against it. This may protect jobs.

[@TheWolfanderson]

@@denniszenanywhere This is gonna be a global phenomenon there will be nowhere to escape unless only a few countries implement UBI then they will close their borders when the masses come flooding in.

[@armin3057]

not really. my friends works in AI safety in a famous institute as a researcher....and he is deeply scared lol

[@JumpDiffusion]

Great interview.

[@krismatic_]

For perspective, all you need is to visualize a single human who has developed an algorithm that's capable of mirroring that human's thoughts. How does that human interact with its invention? What does it do with it? What does this invention do to their sense of self? Likely it will just be a tool to help it solve problems much much quicker.

[@hansh5150]

Two of the most respected people when it comes to history and tech, by 2030 the world will have shifted, we just do not know what the conseqences will be. It is a great discussion and will leave you sleepless for days

[@borntobemild-]

Very clearly and succinctly put answers, sir.

[@voltydequa845]

Yes, he seems up to you.

[@dianagross8784]

Twenty percent good and eighty percent bad is the future of AI

[@lizannewhitlow1085]

The Pareto Principle in reverse?

[@daminc]

"I have no mouth and I must scream".. Soon everywhere

[@jimsykes6843]

Musician here. First, recordings limited musicians' ability to play in live settings - but we could make money from albums. Then, streaming happened - but we could make money from live performances. Then Live Nation and Ticketmaster ate up that money. Now, musicians can make money from licensing. But there are currently over a dozen new startups using AI to generate royalty-free music for people to use. How many more indignities do we have to suffer? And musicians' story is not unique - it's like this for virtually the whole labor market. Start creating things that benefit people, not just the few CEOs who use them to stop hiring people.

[@bradc32]

i hear ya all artists creators are getting fleeced

[@sleepnaught]

It's sad, but it's coming for us all, sooner or later. That fact we're not having a national discussion about how to handle the mass unemployment headed our way its pretty frightening.

[@MrDebranjandutta]

First time I'm seeing Schmidt without his glasses

[@petermartin5030]

Thanks for this informed discussion.

[@voltydequa845]

They are so brave at making you feel knowledgable at a point that you can judge them as informed.

[@franceslock1662]

Interesting interview

[@adtiamzon3663]

Good conversation!

[@bipolarbear9917]

Eric Schmidt is one of the (so-called) high priests of the tech industry that has actually encouraged what Prof. Shoshana Zuboff calls ‘The Age of Surveillance Capitalism’ which is primarily driven by this out of control AI technology. The genie is already out of the bottle!

[@Quasilobo]

The Holy Father (Pope Francis) told Tim Cook that we can make this thing (AI) work for us or against us. But, yes, the genie is out of the bottle.

[@narajuna]

Strange all 3 are of german descent, did the Nazi really fully lose?

[@digitalcurry]

We are Fukt. If you didn't already know it, now you do.

[@Skynet_the_AI]

Thanks Eric

[@Anders01]

Eric Schmidt is very clever about these things! It will be interesting to hear his take on AI.

[@dennisadams4392]

this is about right guys :)

[@chrislannon]

It's not just social media that tries to enrage us. It's media that tries to enrage us--- PBS included. "Shall we play a game?" It amazes me that Eric didn't use the COVID example when discussing China.

[@markiegarza3223]

This is why we need to redefine incentive models. And not have algorithms based on engagement to drive click through for monetary gains. Instead have algorithms that value facts, and trust.

[@warrenb2856]

6:15 "I don't see a solution today, so we going to have to regulate it" Really, who is going to regulate AI, Eric Schmidt? The former CEO of Google is going to regulate AI and he is thinking we may need to ban free speech. Don't we have to abolish the Constitution first?

[@bheehive4497]

GOOD WORK

[@joshuap9580]

Eric Schmidt is a very smart individual

[@petepete2284]

Great stuff.

[@typicalKAMBlover21]

Great discussion. Intellectual feast

[@jennetal.984]

I’m glad Schmidt doesn’t think we need to get rid of free speech

[@Daoland-Everywhere]

Are we talking censorship when we call it guardrails?

[@VenturiLife]

Yes