The Urgent Need for Global Cooperation on Artificial General Intelligence
The Growing Concerns About AI
There is a lot of talk in Beijing this week over when President Trump and President Xi Jinping of China will meet face to face. Some Chinese experts say the two leaders need to wait a few months until Trump decides exactly what tariffs he is going to impose on China — and sees what China will do in response.
The Birth of Artificial General Intelligence
Can I just butt in and say: “Excuse me, Mr. Presidents, but you two need to get together, like, tomorrow. But it’s not to discuss the golden oldies — tariffs, trade, and Taiwan. There is an earthshaking event coming — the birth of artificial general intelligence. The United States and China are the two superpowers closing in on A.G.I. — systems that will be as smart or smarter than the smartest human and able to learn and act on their own. Whatever you both may think you’ll be judged on by history, I assure you that whether you collaborate to create a global architecture of trust and governance over these emerging superintelligent computers, so humanity gets the best out of them and cushions their worst, will be at the top.”
The Importance of Collaboration
I realize many will consider this wasted breath with all the turmoil unleashed by the new administration in Washington, but that will not deter me from making the point as loudly as I can. Because what Soviet-American nuclear arms control was to world stability since the 1970s, U.S.-Chinese A.I. collaboration to make sure we effectively control these rapidly advancing A.I. systems will be for the stability of tomorrow’s world.
The Risks of Unchecked AI
A.I. systems and humanoid robots offer so much potential benefit to humanity, but they could be hugely destructive and destabilizing if not embedded with the right values and controls. In addition, this new age must be defined by a lot of planning about what humans will do for work, and how to preserve the dignity they derive from work, when machines will be able to do so many things better than people. Millions of people possibly losing their jobs and dignity at the same time is a prescription for disorder.
China’s Perspective
A veteran Chinese economist made clear to me that China is very alive to these risks: “Today, a lot of Chinese cannot find jobs. With A.I. they will not be able to find jobs forever. What happens if they cannot find appropriate jobs” because “70 percent of civil servants are robots? That will be super risky.”
The Necessity of Action
There is no time to lose in thinking about how we adapt, and yet we can be so nearsighted when it comes to the signs and warnings. A decade from now, what will journalists say was the most important news story in the fall of 2024 that should have received more attention, given the long-term consequences? Will they say it was the second election of Donald Trump as president in November 2024? Or will they say it was Uber’s decision in September 2024 to go beyond its pilot project in Phoenix and start offering driverless, all-electric Waymo cars on its ride-hailing app in Austin and Atlanta — replacing human Uber drivers?
Conclusion
The advances that China has made on A.I. in just the past year have made it absolutely clear that Beijing and Washington are now the world’s two A.I. superpowers. If you thought otherwise, China’s premier, Li Qiang, opened the China Development Forum, the event that drew me to Beijing, by proudly noting how China’s recently unveiled DeepSeek A.I. system “burst onto the scene,” highlighting “the huge power of innovation and creativity of the Chinese people.”
FAQs
Q: What is Artificial General Intelligence (A.G.I.)?
A: A.G.I. is the holy grail of A.I. — single systems that can master math, physics, biology, chemistry, material science, Shakespeare, poetry, and literature as well as the smartest humans but that can also reason across all of them and see connections no human polymath ever could.
Q: How will A.G.I. impact society?
A: A.G.I. will revolutionize the way we live and work, but it also poses significant risks, including job displacement, social unrest, and the potential for misuse.
Q: Can A.I. be used for good or evil?
A: A.I. can be used for both good and evil, depending on how it is designed and used. It is crucial that we develop ethical guidelines and regulations to ensure that A.I. is used responsibly.
Q: Can the United States and China collaborate on A.I.?
A: Yes, the United States and China can collaborate on A.I. to ensure that it is developed and used in a way that benefits humanity. This requires a commitment to transparency, trust, and cooperation.
