The CEO of Canadian artificial intelligence company Cohere is urging the public to avoid fear-driven claims about AI, arguing that excessive warnings could overshadow the technology’s potential benefits.
Aidan Gomez, co-founder and CEO of the Toronto-based firm, made the comments after an Anthropic researcher suggested there was more than a 10 per cent chance that AI could cause human extinction within the next decade.
Gomez described such extinction-risk claims as fearmongering, saying they are influenced by science-fiction scenarios and could create unnecessary fear and misunderstanding. He also argued that the 10 per cent figure was based on an individual’s personal judgment rather than a mathematical calculation.
At the same time, Gomez said he broadly supports Prime Minister Mark Carney’s proposal for an international body independent of the AI industry to oversee the technology and address its potential risks.
Speaking during Carney’s investment summit in Toronto, Gomez said Canada is among a small group of countries with a significant position in the global AI sector. He attributed this partly to Canada’s early contributions to AI research.
Gomez said Canadians helped fund much of the research behind recent AI advances and argued that Canada should continue playing a major role in determining how the technology is deployed internationally.
Cohere develops generative AI systems for businesses and has established agreements with the Canadian federal government and Bell Canada.
NEWS DESK
PRESS UPDATE