The most advanced technology companies will allow governments to vet their artificial intelligence tools for the first time, Rishi Sunak has announced, as Elon Musk warned the technology could eventually replace all human jobs.
Companies including Meta, Google DeepMind and OpenAI have agreed to allow regulators to test their latest AI products before releasing them to the public, in a move that officials say will slow the race to develop systems that can compete with humans.
Sunak made the announcement on Thursday after a two-day summit at Bletchley Park at which a diverse group including the world’s richest man, the vice-president of the US and a senior Chinese government official agreed that AI poses a grave risk to humanity.
Speaking to reporters at the end of the summit, Sunak said: “I believe the achievements of this summit will tip the balance in favour of humanity.”
The moves were welcomed afterwards by the technology billionaire Elon Musk in a conversation between the pair in central London, during which Musk described what he sees as a dramatically different future for humanity.