At a summit in New Delhi discussing the risks and opportunities of rapidly advancing artificial intelligence (AI), OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stated that AI regulation is an "urgent" necessity.
Redaksiya reports that Altman, the CEO of the company behind ChatGPT, has previously called for global oversight, but warned last year that overly strict approaches could set the US back in the AI race. While demand for generative AI has boosted company profits, concerns about its impact on society and the planet have also grown.
Altman said on Thursday: "The centralization of this technology in one company or country could be catastrophic. This doesn't mean we won't need any regulation or safety measures. Like other powerful technologies, we urgently need them." The AI Impact Summit is the fourth annual meeting to discuss the governance of advanced computing power. It is the largest to date and the first to be held in a developing country. India is using this opportunity to advance its ambitions to compete with the US and China.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated at the meeting: "We must democratize AI. It must become a tool for inclusivity and empowerment. We are entering an era where humans and intelligent systems will co-create, co-work, and co-evolve. We must decide to use AI for the global common good." UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also supported Modi's views, saying, "AI must belong to everyone." He urged tech magnates to support a $3 billion global fund to increase AI capabilities and make computing power more accessible. "It is not possible for the future of AI to be decided by a few countries or left to the whims of a few billionaires," he said.
Researchers and activists say it is crucial to take stronger measures to combat problems ranging from disruptions in workplaces to online abuse and the energy demands of data centers. However, the broad focus of the New Delhi event and the vague promises made at previous summits may make it difficult to secure concrete commitments. Sundar Pichai of Google and Dario Amodei of Anthropic also spoke on Thursday. A photo of Modi and tech leaders on stage, with Amodei and Altman of OpenAI refusing to hold hands, caused online ridicule. Microsoft founder Bill Gates canceled his participation just hours before his speech, facing questions about his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The billionaire stated this month that he regretted "every minute" of his time with Epstein. The mention of someone's name in the Epstein documents does not imply that the person has engaged in any wrongdoing.
Dozens of world leaders and ministers, along with tens of thousands of people from the field, joined the summit. French President Emmanuel Macron, last year's host, stated his commitment to ensuring safe oversight of AI. "Europe is not focused on blind regulation – Europe is a place for innovation and investment, but it is a safe place," he said. India expects to invest more than $200 billion over the next two years, while US tech titans announced new deals and infrastructure projects this week. OpenAI and Indian IT giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) have agreed to create hyperscale AI data center power in India. Google announced plans to lay subsea cables from India as part of its existing $15 billion AI infrastructure investment. AI data centers, which are highly energy-intensive, are being built en masse worldwide as companies race to develop super-intelligent systems. Their intensive use of electricity and water to cool hot servers has raised alarm at a time when nations have pledged to decarbonize their grids to combat climate change.
India rose to third place in the annual global ranking of AI competitiveness calculated by Stanford researchers last year, although experts say it has a long way to go to compete with the US and China. Leaders are expected to issue a statement on Friday about how they plan to govern AI technology. One fear, particularly in India, is disruption in the job market, where millions work in call centers and technical support services. Mukesh Ambani, chairman of India's Reliance Group, said on Thursday: "We will prove that AI does not take away jobs. Instead, it will create new highly skilled job opportunities."