- AI pioneer Hinton warns of job losses, urges UK to consider universal basic income.
- OpenAI CEO Altman experiments with UBI, proposes “universal basic compute” alternative.
- Concerns rise about AI’s potential to widen wealth gap.
Mundane jobs on the chopping block?
Geoffrey Hinton, known as the “AI godfather” for his pioneering work on neural networks, has expressed grave concerns about AI’s potential to eliminate many mundane jobs.
In an interview with the BBC, Hinton warned that AI’s impact on the job market could exacerbate income inequality, making the rich richer while leaving those who lose their jobs in a precarious position.
To mitigate the economic consequences of AI-driven job losses, Hinton has advised the British government to consider implementing a universal basic income (UBI).
UBI is a recurring cash payment made to all adults in a population, regardless of their wealth or employment status, without restrictions on how the money is spent.
The concept has gained traction among AI researchers, futurists, and industry leaders as a means to address AI’s economic impact.
OpenAI CEO’s experiment and alternative proposal
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who has been racing to develop artificial general intelligence, is conducting his own experiment around UBI, the results of which he plans to release soon.
Altman has also suggested an alternative idea called “universal basic compute,” where everyone would receive a slice of a future large language model, such as GPT-7, which they could use, resell, or donate for research purposes.
