Elon Musk warns AI could lead to human extinction

Nov 1: Elon Musk has warned that Artificial Intelligence (AI) if programmed by people in the "environmental movement", may lead to the extinction of humanity.

Appearing on comedian Joe Rogan's podcast on Tuesday, he said some people would use the tech to protect the planet by ending human life.

He was speaking ahead of the UK's AI safety summit, now underway, where he is due to meet the UK Prime Minister.

Many experts consider such warnings overblown.

Nick Clegg, the president of global affairs at Meta and former deputy prime minister - who is also attending the summit - said people shouldn't let "speculative, sometimes somewhat futuristic predictions" crowd out more immediate challenges.

Mr Musk said his comments were born out of fears the environmental movement had "gone too far".

"If you start thinking that humans are bad, then the natural conclusion is humans should die out," he said.

"If AI gets programmed by the extinctionists, its utility function will be the extinction of humanity… they won't even think it's bad."

Mr Musk is due to speak to UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on his platform X later on Thursday.

Representatives of some of the world's most powerful countries are giving speeches at the summit, including - unusually - China, which is emerging as a key player in AI.

Relations between China and the West are fraught in many areas of technology - but the country's Vice Minister Wu Zhaohui said it was seeking a spirit of openness in AI.

"We call for global collaboration to share knowledge and make AI technologies available to the public," he told delegates.

"Countries regardless of their size and strength, have equal rights to develop and use AI. We should increase the representation and voice of developing countries," he added.

(BBC)