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Artificial intelligence (AI)

Dr Geoffrey Hinton has been inundated with requests to talk after quitting Google to warn about risk of digital intelligence

The man often touted as the godfather of artificial intelligence will be responding to requests for help from Bernie Sanders, Elon Musk and the White House, he says, just days after quitting Google to warn the world about the risk of digital intelligence.

Dr Geoffrey Hinton, 75, won computer sciences highest honour, the Turing award, in 2018 for his work on deep learning, along with Metas Yann Lecun and the University of Montreals Yoshua Bengio.

The technology, which now underpins the AI revolution, came about as a result of Hintons efforts to understand the human brain efforts which convinced him that digital brains might be about to supersede biological ones.

But the London-born psychologist and computer scientist might not offer the advice the powerful want to hear.

The US government inevitably has a lot of concerns around national security. And I tend to disagree with them, he told the Guardian. For example, Im sure that the defense department considers that the only safe hands for this stuff is the US defense department the only group of people to actually use nuclear weapons.

Im a socialist, Hinton added. I think that private ownership of the media, and of the means of computation, is not good.

If you view what Google is doing in the context of a capitalist system, its behaving as responsibly as you could expect it to do. But that doesnt mean its trying to maximise utility for all people: its legally obliged to maximise utility for its shareholders, and thats a very different thing.

Hinton has been fielding a new request to talk every two minutes since he spoke out on Monday about his fears that AI progress could lead to the end of civilisation within 20 years.

But when it comes to offering concrete advice, he is lost for words. Im not a policy guy, he says. Im just someone whos suddenly become aware that theres a danger of something really bad happening. I wish I had a nice solution, like: Just stop burning carbon, and youll be OK. But I cant see a simple solution like that.

In the past year, the rapid progress in AI models convinced Hinton to take seriously the threat that digital intelligence could one day supersede humanitys.

For the last 50 years, Ive been trying to make computer models that can learn stuff a bit like the way the brain learns it, in order to understand better how the brain is learning things. But very recently, I decided that maybe these big models are actually much better than the brain.

We need to think hard about it now, and if theres anything we can do. The reason Im not that optimistic is that I dont know any examples of more intelligent things being controlled by less intelligent things.

You need to imagine something that is more intelligent than us by the same degree that we are more intelligent than a frog. Its all very well to say: Well, dont connect them to the internet, but as long as theyre talking to us, they can make us do things.

Even outside of the existential risk, Hinton has other concerns about the rapid growth in power of AI models, citing the influence of Cambridge Analytica backer Robert Mercer on political campaigns on both sides of the Atlantic.

Bob Mercer and Peter Brown, when they were working at IBM on translation, understood the power of having a lot of data. Without Bob Mercer, Trump might well have not yet got elected.

And Bob must have understood the power of manipulation that big data could give you, and so I think already had terrible consequences there.

Authoritarian governments, he says, are the biggest red flag that suggests that humanity will not be able to get hold of the risks of AI before its too late.

This stuff helps authoritarian governments in destroying truth, or manipulating electorates. And having to deal with these threats, in a situation where Americans cant even agree to not give assault rifles to teenage boys, thats not a hard thing to think about.

In Uvalde [the 2022 massacre of 21 people at an elementary school in Texas], there were 200 policemen who didnt dare go through a door because the guy on the other side had an assault rifle and was shooting children.

And yet, they cant decide not to ban assault weapons. So a totally dysfunctional political system like that is just not the right system to have to deal with these threats.

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Bernie Sanders, Elon Musk and White House seeking my help, says godfather of AI - The Guardian

Elon Musk dreams of colonizing Mars, but here on Earth hes settled for frequent flier of the sky. The Twitter, Tesla, and SpaceX CEO, and worlds second-richest man, also holds the title of most active private jet user in the U.S., according to a new report from the Institute for Policy Studies and the Patriotic Millionaires. Musk has tried to keep details regarding private jet use private, famously suspending an account from college student Jack Sweeney, and this report establishes just how much Musk flies privatelyits a lot.

The report from the left-leaning IPS and the Patriotic Millionaires, who regularly urge the government to raises taxes on them, looked at Wealth-X data regarding the relative net worths of jet owners, as well as Federal Aviation Administration user data, along with public information regarding figures like Musk.

Clocking in at a little under one flight every two days, the report found Musks travels consumed 837,934 liters of jet fuel and produced 2,112 tons of CO2 emissions just last year132 times that of the average American. Hes been expanding his collectibles; Musk owns four jets and recently dropped $78 million on a Gulfstream G700, intended to replace his Gulfstream G650ER.

While climate change is a man-made global issue, research like this has found that some particular men are making the crisis bigger, as companies and high-net-worth individuals tend to account for especially hefty individual contributions. This report puts a number on the environmental cost of five-minute flights typical of Musk and other private jet fliers. Wealthy jet fliers release at least 10 times more pollutants per passenger than regular air flights, explain the authors. Private plane usage has skyrocketed over the past couple of years, as the pandemic divided people into their own bubbles. It all means that the wealthiest 1% is responsible for a Godzilla-size carbon footprint, with the report arguing that 1% of the population are likely responsible for half of all air-related carbon emissions. And Musk, the top of the 1%, is an even bigger proportion within that small group.

The affluents greater share of pollution has led the IPS and Patriotic Millionaires to call for a jet fuel tax. Recommending Musk pay an extra $3.94 million in taxesa drop in the (dwindling) water for Musk, who, even with his Twitter shopping spree taking out at least a $20 billion chunk of his fortune, is worth $187.1 billion.

A 2022 Oxfam study found that the richest billionaires emit on average more than 1 million times the carbon dioxide each year as 90% of the population does. Billionaires are also investing in companies that generate greater emissions, Oxfam found; each year the scale of emissions from billionaires investments was the same as the yearly carbon emissions in all of France.

Its not just planes. Ultrawealthy individuals are more likely to contribute to the water crisis with amenities like manicured gardens and pools. Leonardo DiCaprios favorite yachts are also carbon wastelands. An analysis of billionaires from 2018 found that two-thirds of their carbon emissions were traced back to superyachts.

At the end of the day, inequality ends up costing us all. In 2021, the median household income in the U.S. was $70,784. Musks realized compensation from Tesla was$23.5 billion in the same year, notwithstanding his profits from other companies down the line. All that extra money gives Musk some more pocket money to spend on his jets.

Busy dealing with the buggy and increasingly alt-right platform that is Twitter, Musk might be more on the move as he attempts to improve upon his latest investment while juggling his other ventures. A Washington Post analysis found that much of his air traffic in 2018 was dedicated to his work, and some for family (and both have increased in the years since). Musks insistence on being in person, whether with a bodyguard in the bathroom or not, has also likely led to the need for higher jet usage as he bops from company to company to monitor workers attendance. Known for praising his own attendance at Tesla factories and sleeping on the floor, his solution for a struggling company seems to be showing up in person.

Until we can teleport, theres unfortunately no alternative that would allow him to do his job as effectively, Tesla spokesman Dave Arnold previously told the Post. SpaceX did not respond to Fortunes request for comment.

Musks already limited time might be better spent curbing his own carbon emissions and addressing an environmental crisis rather than fixating on the underpopulation crisis hes been vocal about (despite the UN saying the worlds population will continue to grow). If Musk really wants people to build families or much less build a future for their children, he might want to cool his jets on the jet-setting.

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Elon Musk flies private jets more than any other billionairereleasing over 2,000 tons of carbon emissions in his wake - Fortune

Elon Musk holds quarterly investor day calls to talk about the future of Tesla. A call earlier this year backfired when his investors demanded to know if the backlash against his actions, such as buying Twitter and attempting political influencing using the platform, has hurt vehicle sales.

At the end of October 2022, Elon Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion. He immediately fired many employees and restructured the company.

He reinstated accounts for some canceled celebrities and thousands of users suspended for racism, harassment, and misinformation. At the same time, he removed the New York Times verification, calling its feed diarrhea. He made other companies and celebrities pay a $1,000/month fee to keep their blue checkmark.

But Elon Musk did not stop at restructuring Twitter. He used his personal account to suggest Ukraine cede control of Crimea to Russia. He also Tweeted that his factory workers would give up stock options if they voted to unionize before a judge ordered him to take down the illegal, intimidating messageaccording to Teslarati.

According to Vanity Fair, Elon Musks actions could be responsible for Teslas 70% stock value nosedive. The publication cited one famous media personality who owns a Tesla, saying that after the CEOs latest actions, I found myself not wanting to be associated with anything related to Musk.

Tesla has 27% of its dealership in the historically liberal state of California. So Vanity Fairs assertion that Musks antics on Twitter seemed to quickly sour Democrats feelings about Tesla, was understandably concerning for businesspeople invested in the automakers success.

According to the BBC, one investor put the question directly to Elon Musk. During January 2023s quarterly investor call, the CEO was asked if his political influencing on Twitter was damaging the Tesla brand.

Musk quickly told his investors, I think Twitter is actually an incredibly powerful tool for driving demand for Tesla. The CEO feels other companies should be following his lead:

I would really encourage companies out there of all kinds, automotive or otherwise, to make more use of Twitter and to use their Twitter accounts in ways that are interesting and informative, entertaining, and it will help them drive sales just as it has with Tesla.

Musk added that his 127 million follower count on Twitter suggests that Im reasonably popular.

In the past, Musk has told Teslas investors that his only mission is to increase production because the demand for his vehicles is nearly infinite. This could be why he doesnt bother with traditional advertising or even having a media relations team. But in Januarys investor call, Elon Musk also announced that he would be slashing the MSRP of several Tesla models. When asked about why he said, Price really matters.

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Tesla Investors Want To Know if Elon Musk is Hurting Sales - MotorBiscuit

This commentary originally appeared in Fortune.

Do you try to do too much and get intoxicated with your past success? You might be a stupid genius like Elon Muska person who is brilliant in certain limited domains and inept or even emotionally immature in others. If so, prepare for bad daysor consider how to put the brakes on your imagination and ambition, just a touch.

We all have bad days. On April 20, Elon Musks much-touted $3 billion new SpaceX rocket became a fireball over the Gulf of Mexico three minutes into its first flight. Musks company labeled the explosion a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Sure, as Musk, Space X, and NASA insist, something was learned about the failures of the stages to separate and the engines to function, as we can learn from most setbacks. But whatever you label it, it was a costly failure theyd have preferred avoiding.

Tragically, the very same day Musks automotive juggernaut Tesla nosedived after reporting disappointing first-quarter results. That translated to a $13 billion loss for Musk on top of the $3 billion that had flamed out on the space launch. For most people, $16 billion in losses would be devastating, but Musk is still the worlds second-wealthiest person with a total net worth of $164 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index.

Additionally, Musk backtracked a second time on his user-hostile verification policies. And lets not forget he also abandoned his decision to pull out of buying Twitter for an overpriced $44 billion after costly distracting litigation and public taunts at Twitters former leaders. His ad hominem insults against regulators and a heroic British Navy diver, as well as his interactions with flamboyant race-baiting figures and other diversions, seem less than smart.

Meanwhile, the list of missed promises grows longer, including: a fleet of 1 million autonomous taxis he promised by 2020, fully autonomous cars promised by 2017, the Tesla Semi truck by 2018, vehicles that fly and float, Neuralink brain implants by 2020, a Space X mission to Mars, open-source Twitter algorithms last fall, Boring Company tunnels connecting major cities such as Las Vegas and Los Angeles by last year, and a 10-kilometer hyperloop tunnel by 2020.

In March 2023, research revealed that Solar City, the inside enterprise forced upon Tesla shareholders in 2016, has sold only 3,000 solar roof systems, instead of the companys promised 1,000 per monthor about a 99% failure to achieve the target. Given all this volatility, Tesla board members cannot get liability insurance and must be insured by Musk personally!

And lets not even address his volatile family and romantic life, which makes Mozart, Einstein, and Jobs look almost conventional. Alas, Mozart, Einstein, and Job were erratic geniuses as well.

Musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed more than 800 major works, mastering every musical genre of his era, earning him the distinction of being one of the worlds greatest composers in his short 35 years. However, his eccentricitiesfrom his scatological humor and bawdiness in his writing to frenzied sudden impulsive acts such as leaping around the room in public like a catled some to believe that he suffered from some mental pathology. Endocrinologist Benjamin Simkin mapped the paradox of Mozarts majestic music and erratic personality in his book, Medical and Musical Byways of Mozartiana, coming to the diagnosis that Mozart probably suffered from Tourettes Syndrome.

The name Einstein is often used as shorthand for genius. Theoretical physicist Albert Einstein is widely regarded as one of the most influential scientists and thinkers of all time. He is credited for developing two of the most foundational pillars of modern physics: relativity and quantum mechanics. However, his misogynistic manifestos with servile rules for his partners in early marriages and a volatile personal life led biographer Walter Isaacson to conclude that his conquest of general relativity proved easier than finding the forces for the formulas swirling within his family.

Isaacson, who is also the brilliant biographer of Apple founder Steve Jobs, described the array of eccentricities of this other genius. He revealed the array of situations where Jobs was spiteful, rigid, and arrogant: career-long feuds against Google and Adobe, insisting that he would not meet with President Obama until personally invited, odd binge diets, winning highly extended staring contests, and a disdain for bathing. In his first run as CEO, Jobs sparked ferocious internal warfare between divisions, and took sides in the feud between the Lisa and Mac teams. In light of his own volatile home life, he confessed to Isaacson that he wanted the book to be a guide to absent fathers.

Are these personality quirks the essence of their brilliance or pathological eccentricities which sabotage greatness and should not be excused? Sometimes, its a conduct that is actively chosen by mid-career revolutionaries. In 1958, psychologist Edwin Hollander coined the term idiosyncrasy credits to explain how leaders emerge by rising up to group norms and earn the right to be quite non-conforming. The leaders unconventional actions become a device to trigger more innovative behavior later in their career.

Finding your own balance on the spectrum of appropriate conduct as a creative force means considering a few factors: Is your conduct necessary or just based on affect? Is the erratic behavior deceitful to colleagues, shareholders, or others? Does it free your schedule from drowning in needless admin, schedules, and routines? Or is your unusual behavior actually a form of insidious conformity in an environment that rewards it, such as a university, an ad agency, a software firm, or a fashion house? Is your flamboyance hurting others and eroding trust? Is it leading to legal and cultural backlashes that divert your time and impact? Do you have the wrong role models in mind?

I could list hundreds of the greatest Nobel Prize winners and path-breaking entrepreneurs who were not stupid geniuses. As philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer wrote in 1818, It has often been remarked that there is a side at which genius and madness touch, and even pass over into each other. Yet, we must keep in mind that insanity does not guarantee brilliance, cruelty does not produce creativity, and arrogance is not a recipe for impact.

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Is It Smart to Be a Stupid Genius Like Elon Musk? - Yale Insights

Elon Musks risky strategy of piling on one margin-eroding price cut after the other is already paying dividendsby ramping up the pain for Teslas competitors.

More from Fortune: 5 side hustles where you may earn over $20,000 per yearall while working from home Looking to make extra cash? This CD has a 5.15% APY right now Buying a house? Here's how much to save This is how much money you need to earn annually to comfortably buy a $600,000 home

Ford announced on Tuesday sweeping price cuts for its Mustang Mach-E in the U.S. market, where the crossover was the bestselling EV last year not built by Musk.

This makes it thesecond timeit has followed Teslas lead since the start of the year.

The Detroit incumbent knocked off $3,000 from the base version, a cut of 6.5%, reducing its list price to $42,995.

It went even further with the top-of-the-line GT Extended Range nameplate, slashing that by $4,000 to $59,995; at the start of the year, this car still cost nearly $10,000 more.

Unfortunately for Ford CEO Jim Farley, his business cannot exactly afford it.

First-quarter results published after the closing bell revealed ballooning losses at its EV division, dubbed Model e, on the back of spiraling costs.

The $700 million deficit was so deep red the business actually managed to breach the ignominious mark of a negative 100% margin.

That means that for each dollar in revenue Model e generated during the quarter through the sale of an EV, its operating loss went up by an equivalent amount.

It was always expected that traditional car companies, lagging far behind Tesla, would not be profitable in the EV space anytime soon.

But Ford's Model e quarterly financials were truly dire. By comparison, Tesla's operating profits weighed in at an extremely robust 11.4% return for the period despite heavily discounting its models this year.

This allows Musk to further dial up the pain without swinging to a loss.

Late last month Tesla said it viewed this year as a unique opportunity to prey on incumbents like Ford through what now has becomefive straight price cutssince January.

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As many carmakers are working through challenges with the unit economics of their EV programs, we aim to leverage our position as a cost leader, it said.

A race to the bottom where Tesla would be the last man standing, in other words.

Musk has come under fire from investors for warning on the April 19 earnings call he might even be prepared to accept zero profit per vehicle sold. That is because he believes Tesla can recoup the lost earnings and then some with the sale of software like its Full Self-Driving feature, a $15,000 optional add-on that can be downloaded from the cloudprovided of course that it one day solves autonomous driving.

Tesla has triggered a price war in EVs that will have industrywide consequences: Legacy OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] will have to follow, but with higher cost structures, UBS wrote ahead of Fords earnings on Tuesday, designating Tesla and Ford as one of its top and bottom picks in the sector, respectively.

To prepare investors for the pain yet to come, Ford has attempted to portray Model e as a kind of tech startup, tasking it, for example, with building up a suite of vehicle-embedded software services to bolster its argument.

So it came as little surprise when the carmaker revealed in March for the first time that the new division suffered a $2.1 billion loss for 2022 and forecast this would widen to $3 billion this year.

As part of a presentation on its new financial reporting structure, it pledged to turn around the business and position it to achieve an 8% operating margin starting in 2027, versus the whopping 40% negative margin Model e reported for the last one.

Typically the best way for Ford to improve its EV results in the face of headwinds such as sweeping price cuts is through higher volume.

Regardless of powertrain technology, the fixed-cost-heavy car business is all about scalethe more units of a particular model you sell, the faster profit growth should accelerate, a term generally referred to as operating leverage.

Yet Fords EV lineup currently suffers from one major problem that throws a serious monkey wrench into that equation.

Its variable costs, such as the raw materials like steel used to build a car, actually exceed the overall revenue generated with each electric vehicle it sells at present.

As a result of this negative contribution margin, its losses actually worsen the more Mustang Mach-Es and F-150 Lightnings that Ford delivers to customers.

These poor unit economics that Tesla alluded to late last month means Ford is in effect buying market share at a steep cost to its income statement.

Speaking to investors on Tuesday, Ford boss Farley held out hope this wouldnt remain the case much longer even if overall losses at Model e continue, owing to investment in the business.

Were on track this year toward a contribution margin approaching breakeven in the Model e, the CEO said.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

More from Fortune: 5 side hustles where you may earn over $20,000 per yearall while working from homeLooking to make extra cash? This CD has a 5.15% APY right nowBuying a house? Here's how much to saveThis is how much money you need to earn annually to comfortably buy a $600,000 home

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Elon Musks price war pays off as Ford is forced to heavily cut EV prices to compete with discounted Teslas - Yahoo Finance