At the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland, Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, stated that the rapid advancements of artificial intelligence (AI) in the field of biology could potentially double human lifespan within five to ten years. He believes that if AI can be effectively utilized to shorten the time required for biological research, a century's worth of biological progress could be achieved in just five to ten years.
Amodei mentioned that Anthropic is developing a "virtual collaborator," an AI agent capable of performing advanced tasks in the workplace, such as opening Google Docs, using Slack messaging channels, and interacting with employees. Managers would only need to communicate with this AI agent occasionally, similar to how they would manage human employees. He also noted that over the past three to six months, he has grown increasingly confident in the development of AI systems, predicting that by 2026 or 2027, AI systems will surpass most humans in nearly all tasks.
However, Amodei also pointed out that despite the rapid development of AI technology, there are still bureaucratic obstacles in the physical world and human institutions. Taking self-driving cars as an example, Amodei highlighted that the complexities of the real world and bureaucratic processes limit technological advancements. Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, also mentioned that AI is reducing the time required for drug development from years to months, but clinical trials and regulatory approvals are still necessary.
Regarding self-driving cars, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi emphasized that despite ongoing technological advancements, public trust remains a significant challenge. He stated that AI must be ten times safer than humans to gain public acceptance.
Amodei also expressed concerns about the impact of AI on political systems. He fears that AI could exacerbate authoritarian rule and even lead to a surveillance society reminiscent of "1984." Ruth Porat, President and CFO of Google, stressed that Western countries must maintain a leading position in AI development and create a regulatory environment conducive to innovation to tackle future challenges.