On the hottest day in a long time, with a breeze from my fan cooling my face, I thought about the end of the human race. It wasn’t a pleasant thought, but a necessary one, given the stories in the current news cycle.
Along with many other people, I’ve been concerned about the known existential threats to humanity for much of my life. There is the danger of nuclear war, for example, or of climate change, or of an asteroid hitting the earth, or of a terrible pandemic.
But the latest and perhaps greatest immediate threat is from artificial intelligence.
***
Later on in my career, after journalism jobs had disappeared, I found work as a consultant to a number of technology startups. It was from the engineers at those companies that I learned how the software they were creating could become “smarter” over time, by reacting to user experiences.
They explained to me that their products would learn almost as if they were children to become faster, more efficient and more successful at the tasks their creators wanted them to master.
But all of that was kid stuff compared to AI, which advances at hyper speed, driven by market competition and the vast fortunes awaiting its creators. This week, the alarm has been sounded once again by industry insiders that AI may well destroy life as we know it within the next decade.
The thought of this makes me sick. I’m not at all sure whether I’ll still be here a decade from now, but most of the people I love certainly will be, and the thought of them perishing in some sort of an AI-induced catastrophe is simply inconceivable.
But we have to be able to conceive of that. The leading companies in AI are literally begging for regulation. As part of their case, they are issuing ever-more scary predictions.
Meanwhile, the rest of us cannot just sit here as if we assume these industry insiders are like the boy who cried “Wolf!”
After all, we know what happened in that story.
HEADLINES:
US strikes five Iranian oil tankers, as Iran attacks 10 ships, Jordan base (Al Jazeera)
US-Iran tanker attacks signal a dangerous new phase in war (CNN)
Hegseth is shaking up the Pentagon as the US wages war - but at what cost? (BBC)
Andreessen- and Thiel-backed defense startup opens U.S. missile factory as it exits stealth (CNBC)
‘Surge in construction’ at suspected Iranian nuclear site, analysts say, as US considers ways to strike deep underground (CNN)
Trump says every adult American will get $5,000 if Republicans win midterms (BBC)
Trump officials propose sweeping changes to the census that would reshape voting maps (NPR)
Missouri court opens contempt probe into Republican official over redistricting fight (NBC)
Missouri Supreme Court Sets Contempt Hearing in Fight Over House Map (NYT)
Ballots discounted for late postmarks surged in vote-by-mail states Washington and Oregon after Postal Service changes (AP)
Trump makes GOP midterm convention about himself, much to Democrats’ delight (WP)
O’Reilly: Republicans ‘still running in the old model’ (The Hill)
Trump gave Natalie Harp and 2 other aides $45,000 holiday gifts, disclosures show (Politico)
Germany’s Merz accuses AfD of promoting ‘ethnic cleansing’ in Bundestag clash with Weidel (EuroNews)
Germany’s Merz attacks AfD in stormy debate after far-right election win (BBC)
The Theme Park at the Heart of France’s Culture War (NYT)
Cubans are pushed to the breaking point as crises take their toll (NBC)
How Canada decided to hurt its own economy, raise its inflation—and most Canadians approved because they’re so angry at Trump (Fortune)
For Years, John O’Neill Warned of Al Qaeda’s Threat. Then He Died on 9/11. (PBS)
An unnamed donor responds to global aid cuts with a record gift for the nonprofit Americares (AP)
Amish Country Is Seeing a Major Measles Outbreak. RFK Jr. Is Making It Worse. (Truthout)
A journalist coined ‘the Bible Belt’ 100 years ago – it’s been oversimplifying the South ever since (The Conversation)
Lindsay Clancy juror had reasonable doubt but would not agree to acquit, foreperson says (Guardian)
Hit TV show ‘South Park’ becomes ‘South America’ in apparent reference to Trump’s geographic name changes (CNBC)
‘Gambling with our lives’: Anthropic researcher quits, warns against self-improving AI (TechCrunch)
OpenAI claims GPT-6 Astra is an ethereal ‘Alien Mind’ with AGI-like qualities — company warns of alignment challenges as new frontier leader emerges (Tom’s)
A Quieter Kind of AI Breakthrough (WSJ)
Meta Rolls Out A.I. Agent That Can Send Your Emails and Book Your Travel (NYT)
High School Football Coach Has Good Feeling About New Player Called ‘Thunder Beef’ (Onion)
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