Vinod Khosla has little doubt that the long run of humanity with AI is shiny.
The Sun Microsystems co-founder turned celebrity investor predicts that “the necessity to work will disappear,” almost entirely because of AI.
“Almost all expertise, whether family doctors, psychotherapists, oncologists, civil engineers or accountants – every part could be almost free,” he said on Monday in a conversation with TechCrunch editor-in-chief Connie Loizos on the TechCrunch Disrupt 2024 conference.
Asked why he was so optimistic about an AI-driven future, Khosla said there will likely be “great abundance” on the planet where most human labor is free, adding that GDP growth will rise from “2% to well over 5%”.
With many individuals fearing that AI could harm society, Khosla recently wrote an essay titled: AI: Dystopia or Utopia?
Today on stage, he summarized a number of the points from the 13,150-word essay.
Despite his optimism, Khosla acknowledged the potential risks of AI.
“We could have a sentient AI attempting to kill humanity,” he said, adding that AI safety needed to be addressed at the same time as he vehemently opposed California’s now-rejected AI law SB 1047.
However, Khosla's biggest concern is using AI by US competitors.
“Broadly speaking, the most important risk we face is robust AI within the hands of our adversaries,” he said. “I believe mainly of President Xi, and I believe of Putin.”
For months, Khosla has spoken out against open source AI, citing concerns about possible exploitation by China.
In addition to fears that adversaries could use AI as a weapon, Khosla said this technology could ultimately result in greater income inequality.
The enterprise capitalist, a supporter of universal basic income and income redistribution, said: “Capitalism tends to pay attention wealth, so we want to have policies to balance it so everyone has a share.”
Khosla has been optimistic about AI long before the technology's recent breakthroughs. He explained that his investment in OpenAI in 2018 “was a simple decision,” although what the corporate was constructing was still unclear.
Khosla Ventures was certainly one of the primary institutional investors in OpenAI. With the primary check for $50 million, the corporate acquired a 5% stake in the corporate, which is now valued at $157 billion.
