The head of DeepMind has warned of an AI revolution that will change the world 100 times more profoundly
Artificial intelligence could radically transform the world order in the coming years, and the scale of these transformations will surpass the impact of the Industrial Revolution.
According to the scientist, humanity is on the verge of a technological singularity—the moment when artificial intelligence reaches or surpasses the level of human thinking. He is convinced that this could happen within the next few years.
The head of DeepMind emphasized that society underestimates the speed of future changes and has very little time to prepare for the new reality.
“When we look back on this time, I think in about 10 years, we will clearly understand that we were standing at the very foot of the singularity. The impact of this technology on the world is comparable to the Industrial Revolution, but on a scale a hundred times greater—everything will happen ten times faster and on a scale ten times larger. Society needs to hear this now, because we have very little time to prepare for what it will bring,” Demis Hassabis noted.
The head of DeepMind warned against dangerous competition among artificial intelligence developers, which he described as a “race to the bottom.”
According to him, companies are eager to be the first to introduce new AI models, often neglecting cybersecurity and risk management. As a result, those who spend less time building safeguards gain an advantage.
Hassabis acknowledged that public concern over the rapid development of neural networks is entirely justified, as artificial intelligence remains a dual-use technology that can be used both for the benefit of humanity and to create new threats.
According to the researcher, the only way to avoid negative scenarios is to create a flexible system of government regulation capable of responding quickly to rapid technological advancements.
He emphasized that traditional legislative mechanisms cannot keep up with the pace of the industry’s development, so new rules must quickly adapt to changes that occur practically every month.
As an example of AI’s positive impact, Hassabis cited the AlphaFold system, which helped solve one of the most complex problems in modern biology—predicting the three-dimensional structure of proteins.
It was thanks to this project that the scientist received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2024. Currently, the AlphaFold database contains about 200 million protein structures, which are used by nearly three million researchers from 190 countries around the world.
At the end of his speech, Demis Hassabis called on industry representatives to move away from excessive marketing and focus on the practical results of using artificial intelligence.
“We must finally stop thinking about cancer treatment purely in hypothetical terms. We need to take AI tools and finally cure cancer. The world needs far more fundamental breakthroughs like this than we have today,” he emphasized.
Experts believe that the coming decade could be decisive for the development of artificial intelligence, and the decisions made today will impact security, the economy, and scientific progress worldwide.
This was stated by Demis Hassabis, founder and CEO of Google DeepMind, during a speech at Stanford University, according to the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
A survey by the American consulting firm Oliver Wyman revealed a rapid shift in executives’ plans regarding workforce structure, which involves massive cuts to entry-level positions in favor of hiring mid- and senior-level employees due to the active implementation of artificial intelligence. More than 40% of company CEOs plan to reduce the number of entry-level positions over the next 1–2 years, while only 17% of respondents intend to increase the proportion of young employees.
Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton stated that as early as 2026, artificial intelligence will be able to replace a significant number of professions, triggering a new wave of unemployment. This is important because technology is advancing rapidly and is already displacing call center agents and programmers.
Google has launched a pilot test of a new interview format for candidates applying for software engineer positions, which allows the use of AI assistants.
