The Doomsday Clock, a symbolic clock that shows how much time we have left before humanity meets its self-inflicted end, has moved one second closer to midnight. According to the Doomsday Clock, there are just 89 seconds left until midnight, which indicates a symbolic annihilation of humanity.
Since its inception in 1947, this is the closest the Doomsday Clock¡ªset by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a nonprofit organisation¡ªhas been to midnight.
On Tuesday, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the Doomsday Clock one second closer to midnight, citing Russian nuclear threats amid its invasion of Ukraine, tensions in other world hotspots, military applications of artificial intelligence, and climate change as factors underlying the risks of global catastrophe.
"The factors shaping this year's decision¡ªnuclear risk, climate change, the potential misuse of advances in biological science, and a variety of other emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence¡ªwere not new in 2024. But we have seen insufficient progress in addressing the key challenges, and in many cases, this is leading to increasingly negative and worrisome effects," said Daniel Holz, chair of the Bulletin's Science and Security Board.
"Setting the Doomsday Clock at 89 seconds to midnight is a warning to all world leaders," Holz added.
The organisation said the United States, China, and Russia have the prime responsibility to pull the world back from the brink and urged good-faith international dialogue. At a news conference announcing the decision, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Juan Manuel Santos, Colombia's former president, said, "This is a bleak picture, but it is not yet irreversible."
The Bulletin was founded in 1945 by scientists including Albert Einstein and J. Robert Oppenheimer, and since 1947, the Chicago-based nonprofit has been using the minutes left on the Doomsday Clock to warn the public about how close humankind is to destroying the world.
The time left on the clock is adjusted every year based on the level of threats humanity faces.
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