Inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil, researcher and Brookings Institution fellow Chinasa T. Okolo, director of the US Artificial Safety Institute (AISI) Elizabeth Kelly, and Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S, discussed the transformative power of AI during a panel at TIME100 Impact Dinner. San Francisco on Monday. During the interview, which was moderated by TIME editor-in-chief Sam Jacobs, Kurzweil predicted that we will achieve Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), a type of AI that could be smarter than humans, by 2029.
“No one really took it seriously until now,” Kurzweil said of AI. People are sure that it will give us things we never had before, or it will kill us.
Cognizant sponsored Monday’s event, which celebrated 100 of the most influential people leading the revolution in AI. TIME100 AI highlights computer scientists, business leaders, policymakers, advocates and others at the forefront of the industry’s biggest changes. Jacobs polled four panelists — three of whom were listed on the 2024 list — about the opportunities and challenges posed by the rapid development of AI.
Kumar spoke about the potential economic impact of AI productivity and cited a new report from Cognizant that says AI productivity could add more than a billion dollars annually to the US economy by 2032. He pointed out important obstacles preventing widespread adoption, including the need for innovation. accuracy, cost effectiveness, responsible AI processes, and transparent results. “If you don’t get a proposal,” he said, “task automation won’t lead to a business case behind it.”
Okolo highlighted the growth of AI efforts in Africa and the Global South, citing the work of professor Vukosi Marivate of the University of Pretoria in South Africa, who has inspired a new generation of researchers within and outside the continent. However, Okolo acknowledged mixed progress in developing the range of languages that inform AI models, with low-income countries in Africa leading the way despite limited support and funding.
Kurzweil said he was excited about the potential of simulated biology to revolutionize drug discovery and development. By simulating billions of transactions in just a few days, he noted, researchers can speed up the process of finding cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s. He also provided a long-term view of the exponential growth of computing power, predicting a clear so-called S-curve (starting slowly, then growing rapidly before declining) for the deterioration of AI compared to previous technological changes.
Kelly spoke of concerns about the potential for AI to manipulate news in the context of the 2024 election and beyond. “It’s going to be good this year, but it’s going to be important every year as we move forward,” he said. He added that AISI is working to advance the technology to detect fake news and verify real information.
Kelly also noted that lawmakers have been focusing on the risks and benefits of AI for a long time, with initiatives like the AI Bill of Rights and the AI Risk Management Framework. “The president likes to use the phrase ‘promise and risk,’ which I think fits well, because we’re so excited about biology and the development of performance-enhancing drugs that we’re still aware of the potential risks. there,” he said.
As the panel drew to a close, Okolo encouraged attendees, who included 50 past and present TIME100 AI honorees, to think critically about how they develop and use AI and trying to make sure it reaches people in disadvantaged areas in the right way. .
“You often talk about the benefits that AI has brought, you know, to people. And a lot of these people are focused on one area of the world,” he said. “We have to look back, or maybe, go back. and think broadly,” he urged, asking industry leaders to think about people from Africa to South America to South Asia and Southeast Asia. “How can they benefit from this technology, without and that they misuse it during that time?”
The TIME100 Impact Dinner: Leaders Shaping the Future of AI is presented by Cognizant and Northern Data Group.
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