Elon Musk, Steve Wozniak Lead Call For 6-Month Halt On Development Of AI Systems

To claim that many people are afraid of artificial intelligence's capabilities is not a far-fetched statement. With its generative abilities, especially in the creative fields, a lot of professionals could naturally feel threatened, even though most AI specialists agree that ChatGPT alone cannot replace the human mind.

But given the pace of development, especially in the context of GPT-4, things could change very quickly... for better or worse. Many technologists and researchers are of the same opinion, and want OpenAI to halt the development and rollout of smarter AI systems.

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Technologists say AI development needs to be paused

Twitter chief, Elon Musk, along with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, are among thousands to have signed an open letter calling for a six-month pause on the development of artificial intelligence systems that are more powerful than GPT-4.

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The authors, in the letter, urge governments to step in and force companies like OpenAI to stop the development of AI beyond the current iteration of language models.

Also read: A ChatGPT Bug Compromised The Privacy Of Many Users, OpenAI CEO Claims

"We call on all AI labs to immediately pause for at least 6 months the training of AI systems more powerful than GPT-4. This pause should be public and verifiable, and include all key actors. If such a pause cannot be enacted quickly, governments should step in and institute a moratorium," the letter said.

Reuters

Currently, the letter shows over a thousand signatures including big names like Turing Prize winner Yoshua Bengio, businessman Andrew Yang, Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen, and others. In the beginning, it was unclear if these big names actually signed the letter. In conversation with Decrypt, Future of Life Institute Vice President Anthony Aguirre said that all the "top signatories" have been "independently verified."

Why they want AI development to be halted

But why do technologists want innovation be stifled? It has a lot do with lack of regulations and the the pace of development.

"Powerful AI systems should be developed only once we are confident that their effects will be positive and their risks will be manageable," the letter states.

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"AI labs and independent experts should use this pause to jointly develop and implement a set of shared safety protocols for advanced AI design and development that are rigorously audited and overseen by independent outside experts. These protocols should ensure that systems adhering to them are safe beyond a reasonable doubt," the letter adds.

Also read: Artificial Intelligence Could Replace The Equivalent Of 300 Million Jobs: Report

Instead, they pitch, that AI research should be refocused to make today's systems more accurate, transparent, safe, trustworthy, and loyal. In addition, the letter calls for AI developers like OpenAI to work with policymakers to develop AI governance systems - essentially, regulations.

What do you think - do their worries have merit? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.