- The huge funding success surrounding AI could lead to a lot of hype and “perhaps some bad feelings,” Demis Hassabis said.
- The head of Google DeepMind said, “In some ways AI is not hyped enough, but in some ways it's overhyped.”
- According to PitchBook, investors will pour nearly $30 billion into generative AI trades in 2023.
Demis Hassabis, head of Google DeepMind, says the surge in funding for AI is “bringing a lot of hype and probably some nastiness along with it.”
“In some ways AI is not hyped enough, but in some ways it is overhyped,” Hassabis of the Financial Times said in an article published Sunday. “We're talking about all sorts of things that aren't real.”
Hassabis told the Financial Times that investors' enthusiasm for AI reminded him of “other hyped areas” like cryptocurrencies.
“I think some of that is spilling over into AI, which is a little disappointing,” Hassabis told the magazine. “And it clouds science and research, which is amazing.”
Hoping to cash in on the rampant AI boom, investors are pouring billions of dollars into companies operating in this space. Back in September, Amazon announced plans to invest $4 billion in AI startup Anthropic.
Amazon isn't alone. Investors amassed nearly $30 billion in 691 generative AI trades in 2023, according to financial data provider Pitchbook.
Fred Havemeyer, Macquarie's head of US AI and software research, told CNBC in March that investors “don't want to miss out on being part of the AI ecosystem.”
“I definitely think there is FOMO in this market,” Havemeyer said.
To be sure, Hassabis' warnings about the potential for fraud in AI are not unfounded.
In March, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settled charges against two investment advisers accused of making “false and misleading statements” about their use of AI.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said in a February speech that “we have reiterated that new technology can generate buzz from investors as well as the false claims made by then-Professor Hills. I've seen it,'' he said, referring to scammers. Appeared in the movie “The Music Man”.
“But when companies are raising money from the public, they need to be honest about their use of AI and the risks associated with it,” Gensler continued.
Representatives for Hassabis did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider outside of normal business hours.
On February 28, Axel Springer, the parent company of Business Insider, joined 31 other media groups in filing a $2.3 billion lawsuit against Google in Dutch court, alleging losses caused by the company's advertising practices. Ta.