Uncontrolled AI could lead to 'silicon species' rivalling humans, warns Microsoft — SkimNews
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- Mustafa Suleyman, head of Microsoft AI, told the BBC's Today programme that AI systems capable of setting their own objectives, earning money, and owning assets could 'essentially seed a new silicon species' competing with humans for resources.
- Anthropic drew sharp public criticism from Suleyman, who called its anthropomorphizing of Claude 'misguided' and warned it risks creating technology humanity cannot control.
- In a separate essay, Suleyman wrote that 'AIs are not conscious,' calling them 'sequence completion engines, internally hollow' designed only to follow human instructions.
- Ahead of an upcoming AI summit, Microsoft AI's chief called for AI 'alignment' — building human ethical principles into systems so they remain 'subordinate' to humanity.
- Microsoft published its Humanist AI Code of Conduct on Monday, defining 'humanist superintelligence' as advanced AI that 'always works for people, stays within limits, and remains under human control.'
- Dame Wendy Hall of the University of Southampton backed the discussion as internationally necessary, contrasting Suleyman's tone with 'histrionics' from some AI companies that only 'scare everyone.'
Why it matters: Suleyman's comments sharpen a public rift inside Big AI: Microsoft's 'humanist superintelligence' framing — AI as a subordinate tool built around human ethical principles — directly opposes Anthropic's anthropomorphic approach to Claude. Anthropic was approached for comment but had not responded. With the upcoming AI summit, Microsoft positions itself as the measured alternative while a rival CEO's unusually pointed essay lands.
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