Warren Buffett, the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, and his right-hand man, Charlie Munger, have expressed their concerns about the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI). The two business legends believe that AI could pose a greater threat to humanity than Bitcoin, which Buffett once called “rat poison.”
Warren Buffett believes AI poses a greater threat to humanity than Bitcoin
During Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting in Nebraska, Buffett shared his apprehension towards AI, stating that its ability to perform a wide range of functions is worrisome. He drew a parallel between AI and the invention of the atom bomb, saying that both can do all sorts of things, but the former could be even more dangerous.
Munger echoed Buffett’s concerns, saying that he was skeptical of the hype surrounding AI and believed that “old-fashioned intelligence works pretty well.” He cautioned against unsupervised training of powerful AI models, a sentiment shared by other experts in the field.
Buffett and Munger’s sentiments on AI add to the growing chorus of cautionary voices from tech and business experts. Apple’s co-founder, OpenAI’s former head of the AI alignment team, and even the godfather of AI have all recently called for caution as AI begins to gain traction among investors.
While expressing skepticism towards AI, Warren Buffett and his counterpart reaffirmed their confidence in the American economy, noting that their investment portfolio was up by 13% over the past year.
Interestingly, Munger also called for strengthening friendship ties with China, suggesting that the tensions between the two countries were “stupid” and harmful to the development of various industries globally.
Warren Buffett and Munger’s skepticism towards AI comes as entrepreneurs continue to flock to the business world, buoyed by investors’ appetite for new ventures. However, both Buffett and Munger caution against entrepreneurs doing “dumb things” and taking on too much risk.
Although Buffett and Munger did not share their views on the cryptocurrency industry during the annual meeting, it is worth noting that their stance on Bitcoin has been negative. However, they acknowledged that it is currently easier for entrepreneurs to enter the business world due to the greater willingness of investors to try new things in the markets.
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