Ray Kurzweil on how AI will transform the physical world
The changes will be particularly profound in energy, manufacturing and medicine, says the futurist
BY THE TIME children born today are in kindergarten, artificial intelligence (AI) will probably have surpassed humans at all cognitive tasks, from science to creativity. When I first predicted in 1999 that we would have such artificial general intelligence (AGI) by 2029, most experts thought I’d switched to writing fiction. But since the spectacular breakthroughs of the past few years, many experts think we will have AGI even sooner—so I’ve technically gone from being an optimist to a pessimist, without changing my prediction at all.
Explore more
From the June 22nd 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
A broader peace is within Israel’s grasp, say Tamir Pardo and Nimrod Novik
A former Mossad director and former foreign-policy adviser on an offer not to be refused
Three presidents on the partnerships that can at last transform Africa
Success teeters on bold, stable funding, say Julius Maada Bio, Lazarus Chakwera and Andry Rajoelina
Assisted-dying advocates’ claims of freedom have it backward, says Danny Kruger
One of a pair of essays in which members of Parliament argue their cases
My assisted-dying bill safely solves a grave injustice, says Kim Leadbeater
One of a pair of essays in which members of Parliament argue their cases
“Middle powers” can thrive in the age of AI, says Eric Schmidt
Google’s former chief executive has a playbook for riding out the revolution
Polls get elections wrong. So use Google, says Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
The data scientist argues that stronger predictions lie in what people search for