There's a huge amount of sturm und drang.
You know, around
about what I could do to us
all, to the human race.
I mean, you know, the fears are huge.
To the extent
that the president
is talking to the big bosses,
you're all going to testify
and you're here
and you're going to Europe, right?
Yes, that's right.
You talked about the regulation piece.
So first, what are you doing here?
What do you expect to achieve
here in the UK?
Well, here in the U.K.
and I was in Norway on Monday,
the Netherlands on Tuesday, the U.K.
on Wednesday.
There really is a conversation
taking place around the world
about what to do about A.I.
How do we maximize the benefits?
It will,
I think, help us
diagnosis and cure cancers.
But then how do we regulate it?
So it's used safely.
And I think that really does require
that we in the tech sector
step up, that we put in place
safety protocols
and safeguards guardrails, if you will.
And it will require,
I think, a new era of law and regulation.
And that's the conversation
that somebody like me
is having around the world.
And now you're continuing that to the EU.
Is that
because they are coming up with the
AI Act or the protocols or something?
What will
I mean,
how much hope do you have for that
and what will it do?
I am optimistic
that will strike a sensible balance.
I mean, in the first instance,
I think it's worth
remembering that we benefit
and really take for granted
every day technologies
that could have a dangerous impact.
Electricity turns on the lights,
but it can electrocute you.
So we have a circuit breaker.
And so in the same way,
we need to build safety protocols,
safety brakes, if you will,
especially if A.I.
is going to be used to control
critical infrastructure,
the water supply, the electrical grid.
And so
what we're focused on
is inside a company
like Microsoft,
is how we put in air safety guardrails.
The conversation with governments
is, in effect,
should you as a company
need to get a license?
If A.I. is going to be used
in a certain way?
And this is not, at this point
at least a polarized or partizan debate.
Everybody's sort of
rolling up their sleeves
and learning about A.I.
and figuring out how to manage.
So why do you what's your account?
How do you account for that?
That actually
it appears that all different
parts of the equation
are thinking along the same lines? Why?
I mean, social media came and, you know,
we all thought it was going to be great,
you know,
the Arab Spring Revolution, Twitter,
democracy, etc.
And instead,
it is exponentially worse
and a considerable
part of our public space.
I think maybe there's a lesson
in what you just said,
because I actually have that
same conversation.
In some ways,
we look back a decade ago
and we were all in hindsight,
too euphoric.
We thought
social media
would be the savior of democracy.
And so you fast forward now, it's 20, 23,
and we all say,
let's approach
this new technology with our eyes
wide open.
It will do amazing things
that will improve productivity
and will advance economic growth.
It will be a tool
for teachers and students, but
it has risks.
Let's not put the risks aside
let's not just say let companies
do whatever they want.
Let's have law that have regulation.
I think that is the right
kind of wiser approach to take.
Let me again
be the be the devil's advocate.
Sam Altman, who I know
you're in business with,
you have the shared enterprise open, etc.
He basically said,
and he's been
front and center in Congress
and he comes across
like, you know, the knight
in shining armor.
But he says about,
you know, the regulation and stuff.
He says, the US Senate.
I think if this technology goes wrong,
it can go quite wrong.
We want to be vocal about that.
We want to work with the government
to prevent prevent that from happening.
But then he says that it could cease
his company could cease
operating in the EU.
If it can't comply with legislation.
Is he speaking out of ten different sides
of his mouth,
try to have cake and eat it too?
No, I don't think so.
I mean, OpenAI, the company
that Sam heads
and Microsoft worked
very closely together.
We've been partners
and you want a little bit of regulation,
but not too much.
Well,
I think, you know, it's
sort of a good thing to think about.
We don't want to stifle innovation.
I think that would
ultimately prevent society
from reaping the benefits
that this has to offer.
So it's about getting the balance right.
And it's a time
when the technology is advancing quickly.
It's a time
when people are sitting down together.
And not surprisingly,
some days
it is easier to sort out
an answer than others.
What you do see,
whether you're talking about
Sam Altman or Microsoft,
is ultimately
some convergence,
you know,
around a set of practical standards.
And I think in some ways benefiting from
not just a year,
but a century's worth of experience.
We all fly on airplanes
if we don't want them to crash.
But we want to go farther than we
otherwise could.
We have global
as well as national safety
standards, safety features,
testing before a plane is certified
to fly,
constant monitoring of aircraft
after they've entered service.
I think that
points to the right direction.
We always want better planes.
We always want them to be safe.
We should want the same thing for me. I.