“If things don’t change, by 2040 capitalism will have crashed, societal institutions will have been undermined, civilization will collapse and humans will have two options: live in chaos ruled by violent gangs or live under total surveillance in AI-controlled pockets.
“It could be otherwise, but there do not seem to be any political institutions that understand the scope of what we are facing, and we are not creating the next generation of institutions and legislation that could protect us against our own invention.”
This response was written in November 2023 in reply to the question: Considering likely changes due to the proliferation of AI in individuals’ lives and in social, economic and political systems, how will life have changed by 2040? This and more than 150 additional responses are included in the report “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence by 2040”