Alongside the benefits, AI will also bring dangers, like powerful autonomous weapons, or new ways for the few to oppress the many.

Artificial intelligence has the power to eradicate poverty and disease or hasten the end of human civilisation as we know it – according to a speech delivered by Professor Stephen Hawking this evening.

Alongside the benefits, AI will also bring dangers, like powerful autonomous weapons, or new ways for the few to oppress the many.

“Success in creating AI could be the biggest event in the history of our civilisation,” said Professor Hawking. “But it could also be the last – unless we learn how to avoid the risks. Alongside the benefits, AI will also bring dangers like powerful autonomous weapons or new ways for the few to oppress the many.

“We cannot predict what we might achieve when our own minds are amplified by AI. Perhaps with the tools of this new technological revolution, we will be able to undo some of the damage done to the natural world by the last one – industrialisation.”

The Centre for the Future of Intelligence will initially focus on seven distinct projects in the first three-year phase of its work, reaching out to brilliant researchers and connecting them and their ideas to the challenges of making the best of AI. Among the initial research topics are: ‘Science, value and the future of intelligence’; ‘Policy and responsible innovation’; ‘Autonomous weapons – prospects for regulation’ and ‘Trust and transparency’.

The Academic Director of the Centre, and Bertrand Russell Professor of Philosophy at Cambridge, Huw Price, said: “The creation of machine intelligence is likely to be a once-in-a-planet’s-lifetime event. It is a future we humans face together. Our aim is to build a broad community with the expertise and sense of common purpose to make this future the best it can be.”

Many researchers now take seriously the possibility that intelligence equal to our own will be created in computers within this century. Freed of biological constraints, such as limited memory and slow biochemical processing speeds, machines may eventually become more intelligent than we are – with profound implications for us all.

AI pioneer Professor Maggie Boden (University of Sussex) sits on the Centre’s advisory board and spoke at this evening’s launch. She said: “AI is hugely exciting. Its practical applications can help us to tackle important social problems, as well as easing many tasks in everyday life. And it has advanced the sciences of mind and life in fundamental ways. But it has limitations, which present grave dangers given uncritical use. CFI aims to pre-empt these dangers, by guiding AI development in human-friendly ways.”

“Recent landmarks such as self-driving cars or a computer game winning at the game of Go, are signs of what’s to come,” added Professor Hawking. “The rise of powerful AI will either be the best or the worst thing ever to happen to humanity. We do not yet know which. The research done by this centre is crucial to the future of our civilisation and of our species.”

Transcript of Professor Hawking’s speech at the launch of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, October 19, 2016

“It is a great pleasure to be here today to open this new Centre. We spend a great deal of time studying history, which, let’s face it, is mostly the history of stupidity. So it is a welcome change that people are studying instead the future of intelligence.

Intelligence is central to what it means to be human. Everything that our civilisation has achieved, is a product of human intelligence, from learning to master fire, to learning to grow food, to understanding the cosmos.

I believe there is no deep difference between what can be achieved by a biological brain and what can be achieved by a computer. It therefore follows that computers can, in theory, emulate human intelligence — and exceed it.

Artificial intelligence research is now progressing rapidly. Recent landmarks such as self-driving cars, or a computer winning at the game of Go, are signs of what is to come. Enormous levels of investment are pouring into this technology. The achievements we have seen so far will surely pale against what the coming decades will bring.

The potential benefits of creating intelligence are huge. We cannot predict what we might achieve, when our own minds are amplified by AI. Perhaps with the tools of this new technological revolution, we will be able to undo some of the damage done to the natural world by the last one — industrialisation. And surely we will aim to finally eradicate disease and poverty. Every aspect of our lives will be transformed. In short, success in creating AI, could be the biggest event in the history of our civilisation.

But it could also be the last, unless we learn how to avoid the risks. Alongside the benefits, AI will also bring dangers, like powerful autonomous weapons, or new ways for the few to oppress the many. It will bring great disruption to our economy. And in the future, AI could develop a will of its own — a will that is in conflict with ours.

In short, the rise of powerful AI will be either the best, or the worst thing, ever to happen to humanity. We do not yet know which. That is why in 2014, I and a few others called for more research to be done in this area. I am very glad that someone was listening to me!

The research done by this centre is crucial to the future of our civilisation and of our species. I wish you the best of luck!”

以下为霍金演讲全文的中文版：

今天，非常荣幸来来这里参加新中心的开启仪式。

我们花了大把的时间研究历史，让我们来直面这部历史，这近乎是部愚昧的历史。所以，人们现在转而研究未来的智慧了，这种转变将备受欢迎。

对人类而言，智慧是存在的核心所在。一切文明，皆是智慧的产物。从学会用火，到学会耕种，到理解宇宙。

我相信，生物的大脑所获得的智慧，与计算机所能获得的智慧，并无本质区别。因此，理论上，计算机可以模拟人类智慧，并超越它。

现在人工智能的研究日新月异。最新的标志性成果，比如自动驾驶汽车、阿尔法狗战胜围棋世界高手，预示着即将到来新的时代。大小额投资纷纷倾注于这个领域。我们迄今为止所见到的成就，在新时代面前，即将黯然失色。

人工智能的带来的益处是巨大的。我们无法预测，当人类心智被人工智能扩展时，我们会取得哪些成就。也许，有了这个技术革命的新工具，我们能够有能力弥补一些由工业化对自然界造成的破坏。当然，我们希望能够最终消灭疾病和贫穷。我们生活的方方面面都会被变化。简而言之，人工智能的成功创造，可以说是人类文明史上最大的事件。

但是，它也可能是人类文明史的终结，除非我们学会如何避免它所带来的危害。人工智能在带来益处的同时，也带来危险，比如强大的自动武器，或少数人欺压多数人的新方法。它也可能给我们的经济带来巨大的破坏。将来，人工智能可能会发展出来它自己的意志——一个与人类相冲突的意志。

总之，人工智能的强力崛起，在人类历史上，可能是最好的，也可能是最糟糕的。而我们尚且不知道会是哪一个。这是为什么在2014年，我和其它几个人呼吁在这个领域进行更多研究。令我欣慰的是，有人听到了我的呼声！

这个中心的研究，对我们人类文明的将来，对我们人类这个物种而言，都是极其关键的。祝大家好运！