Eric Schmidt, former Google boss, fears a ‘Bin Laden AI’ scenario
The former Google chief executive is concerned that terrorists or “rogue countries” could use artificial intelligence to “harm innocent individuals”. Eric Schmidt, former chief executive of Google from 2001 to 2017, told the BBC that he was concerned about the extreme risks that AI could pose. He said that he agreed with US export controls on powerful microchips that power the most advanced AI systems. “
The tech billionaire, who held senior posts at Google from 2001 to 2017, told the Today programme “North Korea, or Iran, or even Russia” could adopt and misuse the technology to create biological weapons.
He called for government oversight on private tech companies which are developing AI models, but warned over-regulation could stifle innovation.
Mr Schmidt agreed with US export controls on powerful microchips which power the most advanced AI systems.
Before he left office, former US President Joe Biden restricted the export of microchips to all but 18 countries, in order to slow adversaries’ progress on AI research.
The decision could still be reversed by Donald Trump.
“Think about North Korea, or Iran, or even Russia, who have some evil goal,” Mr Schmidt said.
“This technology is fast enough for them to adopt that they could misuse it and do real harm,” he told Today presenter Amol Rajan.
He added AI systems, in the wrong hands, could be used to develop weapons to create “a bad biological attack from some evil person. “
I worry about the ‘Osama Bin Laden scenario’, in which a truly evil person takes control of some aspect of modern life and misuses it to harm innocents,” he told Today presenter Amol Rajan.
He added that AI systems, in the wrong hands, could be used to develop weapons to create a “bad biological attack from some Schmidt suggested a balance to maintain between government oversight and over-regulation. He added: “We don’t think we should be allowed to do this unilaterally, but we believe it should be regulated. He was speaking in Paris where the AI Action Summit ended with the US and UK refusing the sign the agreement. JD Vance, US Vice President, said that regulation would “kill an industry at the very moment it is taking off”. He also stated that the big tech companies did not “understand 15 years ago” how AI could be used, but do now. “My experience is that the tech leaders are aware of their impact, but may make different value judgments than government officials,” Schmidt said.
Mr Schmidt headed Google at the time it bought Android, which makes the world’s most popular mobile operating system.
He supports initiatives to keep smartphones out of schools. He said: “I was one of those people who didn’t understand and I will take responsibility for the fact that the world doesn’t work the way we tech people think it does,” he added. “
I believe smartphones with a child can be safe,” said he, “they just have to be moderated… We can all agree that kids should be protected from bad things in the online world. He said: “Why would you run such an uncontrolled experiment with the most important people of the world – the next generation – on social media? “
Campaigners for limiting children’s smartphone usage argue phones are addictive and “have lured children away from the activities that are indispensable to healthy development”.
Australia’s parliament passed a law to ban social media use for under-16s in 2024, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese saying it was important to protect children from its “harms”. The Lancet published a study in which it was suggested that mobile phones in schools didn’t improve student behaviour or grades.
