Facts

• Geoffrey Hinton — a computer scientist who has been dubbed “The Godfather of AI” — told The New York Times on Monday that he's quitting his part-time position at Google and will instead devote his time to warning the world about the potential threat of artificial intelligence.
• In 2012, Hinton and two of his University of Toronto graduate students created technology that later became the foundation for many current AI systems. He says he “consoles” himself with the excuse: “If I hadn't done it, somebody else would have."
• Hinton’s decision to speak out comes as lawmakers, advocacy groups, and tech insiders have raised concerns about the potential negative consequences of AI. The widely used ChatGPT has drawn particular attention as tech companies look to develop similar AI tools.
• Hinton said he hadn't been concerned about Google’s relationship with AI until Microsoft recently launched its new GPT-4-powered Bing, challenging Google’s core business and sparking a “code red” response. He added that the fierce competition could spiral out of control.
• Since OpenAI released GPT-4 — its new and vastly more powerful version of ChatGPT — in March, more than 1K technology leaders and researchers have signed the Future of Life Institute's open letter calling for a six-month pause on the development of more powerful systems, citing their “profound risks to society and humanity.”
• Hinton has echoed those fears, stating that progression since 2012, while astonishing, is likely just the tip of the iceberg. He didn't sign the letter at the time, but he has since claimed it was because he didn't want to criticize Google while working there.