The CEO of OpenAI shared his views on the prospects of moving from conventional artificial intelligence (AI) to the creation of artificial strong intelligence (AGI) or superintelligence that is capable of thinking like and even surpassing humans. According to Sam Altman, the first AI agents corresponding to the AGI level could appear as early as 2025.
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In his blog, Altman talked about the future of OpenAI. The company’s main goal at the moment is to create “superintelligence in the true sense of the word.” Altman emphasized that tools based on superintelligence will lead to innovation and, as a result, to an increase in the well-being of all humanity. According to him, new AI agents will surpass the intellectual capabilities of people and will significantly change the structure of companies and the results of their work, entering the “composition of a full-fledged workforce.”
However, despite the optimism and promises, last month Altman tried to lower expectations for AGI, saying the technology “will be much less important” than people believe. And as The Verge notes, de-emphasizing the traditional definition of AGI could be beneficial for OpenAI due to its close partnership with Microsoft, as OpenAI is required to officially announce the creation of AGI as part of its 2023 exclusivity agreements.
However, Microsoft defines its interest in AGI, first of all, as a system capable of generating $100 billion in profit, which today can create certain difficulties, since OpenAI is not yet profitable and even vice versa. Even the ChatGPT Pro subscription for $200 per month remains unprofitable. “People are using this tool much more often than we expected,” Altman wrote in a series of posts on Platform X. That is, the technical resources expended on querying and processing user data exceed the subscription price.
Although Altman does not directly mention OpenAI’s profit-sharing agreement with Microsoft, he does recall events that led to his ouster as OpenAI CEO, then being hired by Microsoft, and then returning to OpenAI in November 2023. “Looking back, I certainly wish I had done things differently,” Altman says. “We need to build a stronger governance system for OpenAI and pursue our mission to achieve an AGI system that benefits all of humanity.”