Cyprus professor warns of AI-driven dependence on thinking — Cyprus Mail
Savvas A. Hadjichristofis, a professor of artificial intelligence at Neapolis University Pafos in Cyprus, said that the main threat from AI may lie not in a machine uprising, but in people gradually losing confidence in their ability to think and make decisions without algorithms. He said this to the Cyprus News Agency, Cyprus Mail reports.
Hadjichristofis, who also serves as vice rector for research and innovation, called uncritical trust in machines the deeper problem. In his view, society may reach a state in which it does not feel capable of making decisions without consulting AI.
Risks of technology concentration
The professor urged people to take seriously the warnings of researchers who have left major technology companies. He noted that such specialists understand the systems well from the inside and see how extremely powerful tools are rapidly becoming concentrated in the hands of a small number of companies.
At the same time, Hadjichristofis stressed that statements by company executives about AI safety cannot be separated from their commercial interests. He mentioned proposals by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei for independent model evaluations, shared safety standards, checks before systems are released, and restrictions on applications related to cyberattacks or biological weapons. The professor also noted that OpenAI chief Sam Altman had advocated continuing technological development under stricter oversight and at a slower pace.
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According to the scholar, a pause in AI development can enhance safety only if universal rules, transparency, and independent oversight are in place. If the terms of such a pause are determined by the current industry leaders, this could strengthen their market dominance. He linked this risk to a situation in which regulated entities gain decisive influence over the rules meant to control them.
Education and human responsibility
Hadjichristofis also pointed to practical dangers of AI: automated cyberattacks, malicious biological uses, disinformation, mass surveillance, discrimination in hiring or lending, job losses, and weapons systems without sufficient human control. However, he urged people not to focus only on scenarios of humanity's destruction, since, in his assessment, negative effects may already be emerging in education, work, democracy, and everyday decision-making.
The professor called education the first response to these challenges. Children, he believes, should understand how an AI response is formed, how to verify sources, recognize uncertainty, who selects the data, and who benefits from an automated decision. He also stressed the need to preserve critical thinking, imagination, memory, empathy, dialogue, ethical judgment, and responsibility in education.
At the institutional level, Hadjichristofis proposed independent oversight of the most powerful models, mandatory reporting of serious incidents, access for regulators and independent researchers to necessary information, clear human responsibility for high-risk decisions, and effective sanctions. He added that the EU Artificial Intelligence Act could limit the unchecked influence of corporations provided that its enforcement is independent, transparent, and adequately resourced.
