Elon Musk and more than 1,000 people sign an open letter calling for a pause on training AI systems more powerful than GPT-4 – Business Insider

Posted by timmreardon on 03/29/2023
Posted in: Uncategorized.

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

  • Elon Musk and multiple experts have signed a letter raising concerns about the development of AI.
  • The letter was issued by the non-profit Future of Life Institute. 
  • Its signatories called for a 6-month pause on the training of AI systems more powerful than GPT-4.

Elon Musk and 1,125 people, including AI experts, have signed an open lettercalling for a six-month pause on advanced AI development.

The letter, issued by the non-profit Future of Life Institute, called for AI labs to pause training any tech more powerful than OpenAI’s GPT-4, which launched earlier this month. The letter also called on governments to step in and institute a moratorium if the pause “cannot be enacted quickly.”

Reuters and multiple other publications reported the news.

The non-profit said powerful AI systems should only be developed “once we are confident that their effects will be positive and their risks will be manageable.” It cited potential risks to humanity and society, including the spread of misinformation and widespread automation of jobs.

The letter urged AI companies to create and implement a set of shared safety protocols for AI development, which would be overseen by independent experts. 

Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak, Stability AI CEO Emad Mostaque, researchers at Alphabet’s AI lab DeepMind, and notable AI professors have also signed the letter. At the time of publication, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had not added his signature.

The letter accused AI labs of being “locked in an out-of-control race to develop and deploy” powerful tech.

The launch of OpenAI’s viral chatbot ChatGPT appears to have prompted several other companies to launch a range of competing AI products. OpenAI’s latest offering, GPT-4, has been hailed as more creative and smarter than its popular predecessor. Altman said the new tech was capable of passing the bar exam and scoring a 5 on several AP exams.

The Future of Life Institute’s open letter said the six-month pause is not for general AI development, but rather a step back from the “dangerous race.”

OpenAI did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment, made outside normal working hours.

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