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contrived intelligence agency ( AI ) has been around for ten , but this class was a break for the nervous technology , with OpenAI ’s ChatGPT make approachable , practical AI for the mass . AI , however , has a chequer story , and today ’s technology was preceded by a curt track platter of flunk experiments .

For the most part , innovations in AI seem poised to ameliorate things like aesculapian nosology and scientific breakthrough . One AI exemplar can , for example , detect whether you ’re at eminent risk of originate lung cancer byanalyzing an X - beam scan . During COVID-19 , scientists also built an algorithm that could diagnose the virus bylistening to elusive difference of opinion in the sound of hoi polloi ’s coughs . AI has also been used todesign quantum physics experimentsbeyond what humans have conceive .

A screen filled with computer code.

Artificial intelligence has been around for decades, but this year was a breakout for the spooky technology.

But not all the excogitation are so benign . From orca lagger to AI that threatens humans ’s future , here are some of the scariest AI breakthrough potential to come in 2024 .

Q* — the age of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)?

We do n’t know why exactly OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was dismissed and reinstated in previous 2023 . But amid collective bedlam at OpenAI , hearsay swirled of an advance technology that could threaten the future tense of human beings . That OpenAI system , call in Q * ( pronounced Q - whiz ) may incarnate the potentially innovational realization of artificial general intelligence activity ( AGI),Reutersreported . Little is known about this mysterious system , but should reports be true , it could give up AI ’s capabilities up several notch .

relate : AI is transforming every panorama of science . Here ’s how .

AGI is a hypothetical tipping point , also get laid as the " Singularity , " in which AI becomes impudent than humans . Current generations of AI still lag in area in which humanity surpass , such as context - ground reasoning and genuine creativeness . Most , if not all , AI - sire content is just chuck , in some way , the data point used to train it .

An illustration of two hands reaching across the metaverse and the real world.

Little is known about artificial general intelligence, but it could boost AI’s capabilities.

But AGI could potentially do particular jobs well than most people , scientist have said . It could also be weaponized and used , for example , to make enhanced pathogen , launch massive cyber attack , or orchestrate flock manipulation .

The idea of AGI has long been confined to science fable , and many scientistsbelieve we ’ll never reach this gunpoint . For OpenAI to have reached this tipping percentage point already would sure be a shock — but not beyond the realm of possibility . We know , for example , that Sam Altman was already lay the groundwork for AGI in February 2023 , outlining OpenAI ’s approach to AGI in ablog post . We also know expert are beginning to predict an impending breakthrough , including Nvidia ’s CEO Jensen Huang , who said in November that AGI is in reach within the next five years , Barronsreported . Could 2024 be the breakout year for AGI ? Only time will say .

Election-rigging hyperrealistic deepfakes

One of the most pressing cyber threats is that of deepfakes — entirely manufacture images or videos of the great unwashed that might misrepresent them , criminate them or swagger them . AI deepfake technology has n’t yet been safe enough to be a pregnant menace , but that might be about to change .

AI can now generate substantial - time deepfakes — live video feeds , in other words — and it is now becoming so serious at generating human fount thatpeople can no longer tell the difference between what ’s veridical or fake . Another subject , published in the journalPsychological Scienceon Nov. 13 , unearthed the phenomenon of " hyperrealism , " in which AI - generated content is more likely to be perceived as " real " than actually real message .

This would make it much impossible for people to distinguish fact from fabrication with the naked centre . Although tools could help oneself people detect deepfakes , these are n’t in the mainstream yet . Intel , for example , has built a veridical - time deepfake detector thatworks by using AI to canvas blood line flow . But FakeCatcher , as it ’s known , has produced mixed final result , accord tothe BBC .

An older person using their smartphone.

AI deepfake technology has the potential to swing elections.

As reproductive AI matures , one scary hypothesis is that mass could deploy deepfakes to set about to swing elections . TheFinancial Times ( FT)reported , for example , that Bangladesh is brace itself for an election in January that will be interrupt by deepfakes . As the U.S. gears up for a presidential election in November 2024 , there ’s a possible action that AI and deepfakes could shift the resultant of this critical right to vote . UC Berkeleyis monitoring AI utilisation in campaigning , for exemplar , andNBC Newsalso reported that many land miss the law or tools to handle any surge in AI - generated disinformation .

Mainstream AI-powered killer robots

Governments around the humanity are progressively contain AI into tools for warfare . The U.S. government announced on Nov. 22 that 47 states had endorse a declaration on theresponsible use of AI in the armed forces — first launched at The Hague in February . Why was such a contract involve ? Because " irresponsible " utilization is a real and terrifying prospect . We ’ve seen , for good example , AI drones allegedly hunt down soldier in Libyawith no human input signal .

AI can recognize patterns , self - learn , make prediction or bring forth recommendations in military context , and an AI arms race is already afoot . In 2024 , it ’s likely we ’ll not only see AI used in weapons systems but also in logistics and decision support systems , as well as enquiry and exploitation . In 2022 , for representative , AI generated40,000 novel , hypothetical chemical weapons . Various offset of the U.S. armed forces haveordered dronesthat can execute target acknowledgment and battle cross better than humans . Israel , too , used AI to rapidly describe target at least 50 times quicker than humans can in the latest Israel - Hamas warfare , harmonise toNPR .

— In a 1st , scientists combine AI with a ' minibrain ' to make intercrossed computer

A control room filled with blue screens.

Governments around the world are incorporating AI into military systems.

— ' bookman of Games ' is the first AI that can subdue different type of games , like chess and salamander

— scientist created AI that could detect alien life — and they ’re not entirely sure how it work

But one of the most feared development area is that of lethal self-governing weapon systems ( LAWS ) — or killer robot . Several conduce scientists and technologists have discourage against killer robots , including Stephen Hawking in 2015andElon Musk in 2017 , but the technology has n’t yet materialized on a mass scale .

Abstract image of binary data emitted from AGI brain.

That said , some worrying developments suggest this year might be a prison-breaking for killer robots . For instance , inUkraine , Russia allegedly deploy the Zala KYB - UAV poke , which could recognise and onslaught target without human interference , according to a report card fromThe Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists . Australia , too , has developedGhost Shark — an autonomous poor boy system that is set to be produced " at scale of measurement " , according toAustralian Financial Review .   The amount state around the creation are drop on AI is also an indicator — with China farm AI expenditure from a combine $ 11.6 million in 2010 to $ 141 million by 2019 , according to Datenna , Reuters reported . This is because , the issue added , China is locked in a race with the U.S. to deploy LAWS . fuse , these ontogenesis suggest we ’re enter a new dawn of AI war .

two chips on a circuit board with the US and China flags on them

Artificial intelligence brain in network node.

A conceptual illustration of a futuristic AI machine looking at data.

Illustration of a brain.

lady justice with a circle of neon blue and a dark background

An illustration of a robot holding up a mask of a smiling human face.

FPV kamikaze drones flying in the sky.

Illustration of opening head with binary code

an illustration of a line of robots working on computers

A painting of a Viking man on a boat wearing a horned helmet

The sun in a very thin crescent shape during a solar eclipse

Paintings of animals from Lascaux cave

Stonehenge, Salisbury, UK, July 30, 2024; Stunning aerial view of the spectacular historical monument of Stonehenge stone circles, Wiltshire, England, UK.

A collage of three different robots

Rollable laptop.

An aerial photo of mountains rising out of Antarctica snowy and icy landscape, as seen from NASA’s Operation IceBridge research aircraft.