Rapid progress in artificial intelligence “keeps me awake at night”, says Google chief

Google’s chief executive has admitted that the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) keeps him awake at night, despite the company accelerating the development of the technology.

Sundar Pichai said he doesn’t fully understand artificial intelligence, but said one day it will be “much more powerful than anything we’ve seen so far.”

In an interview with American television CBS, he said: “I have always thought that AI is the most profound technology that humanity is working on. Deeper than fire or electricity or anything we’ve done in the past.”

However, the technical director admitted he was concerned the rapid, uncontrolled advance of technology.

Mr Pichai said: “If it’s introduced incorrectly it can be very damaging, we don’t have all the answers yet and technology is moving fast, doesn’t that keep me up at night? Definitely.”

Last month, tech leaders including Elon Musk signed an open letter calls for a six-month hiatus in AI research and a warning that technology is getting out of hand.

The letter, led by the Future of Life Institute, lists dozens of Google employees as signatories.

Mr Pichai called the technology a “black box” that “we don’t fully understand”.

“You can’t say exactly why he said that or why he was wrong. I don’t think we fully understand how the human mind works, either.”