Google DeepMind CEO on AGI: A Cautious Outlook

Published Date : 26/05/2025 

Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis maintains a more cautious outlook on the arrival of artificial general intelligence (AGI) compared to co-founder Sergey Brin. Hassabis predicts AGI will arrive just after 2030, emphasizing the complexity of defining and achieving true AGI. 

Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis holds a more cautious outlook on the arrival of artificial general intelligence (AGI) than the Alphabet-owned company's co-founder Sergey Brin. AGI's definition is contested, with some focusing on human-level competence across all domains and others on an AI’s capacity to learn, adapt, and produce autonomous outputs beyond its training data. Despite both having access to similar data and insights into AI development, Hassabis' perspective differs from Brin's.

In a recent conversation on the New York Times' Hard Fork podcast, it was noted that Brin expects AGI to arrive before 2030, while Hassabis has predicted that it will happen just after 2030. This difference in forecasts raises questions about how these Google executives may be perceiving differently from the same information. Hassabis also stated that he is sticking to a timeline he has maintained since DeepMind was founded in 2010.

Talking at the NYT podcast, Hassabis said, “We thought it was roughly a 20-year mission, and amazingly, we're on track. It's somewhere around there, I would think.” The prediction came after Brin jokingly accused DeepMind CEO of “sandbagging,” which is intentionally downplaying timelines to later overdeliver. However, during the interview, Hassabis stood by his reasoning, pointing to the complexity of defining AGI itself.

“I have quite a high bar. It should be able to do all of the things that the human brain can do, even theoretically. And so that's a higher bar than, say, what the typical individual human could do, which is obviously very economically important,” Hassabis noted. When asked whether AGI would emerge through gradual improvements or sudden breakthroughs, Hassabis said both approaches are “likely necessary.” “We push unbelievably hard on the scaling,” he explained, while also funding “blue sky” research such as AlphaEvolve.

Just as the internet shaped millennials and smartphones defined Gen Z, generative AI is the hallmark of Gen Alpha. Over the next 5 to 10 years, I think we're going to find what normally happens with big new technology shifts, which is that some jobs get disrupted. But new, more valuable, usually more interesting jobs get created, 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS): 

Q: What is AGI?

A: AGI stands for Artificial General Intelligence, which refers to an AI system that can understand, learn, and apply knowledge across a wide range of tasks at a level equal to or beyond human capabilities.

Q: What is DeepMind?

A: DeepMind is an AI research company founded in 2010 and acquired by Google in 2014. It focuses on developing advanced AI systems and has made significant contributions to the field of artificial intelligence.

Q: What is Demis Hassabis' role at DeepMind?

A: Demis Hassabis is the CEO and co-founder of DeepMind. He is a leading figure in the AI community and plays a crucial role in shaping the company's research and development efforts.

Q: What is Sergey Brin's prediction about AGI?

A: Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, expects AGI to arrive before 2030, which contrasts with Demis Hassabis' more cautious prediction of AGI arriving just after 2030.

Q: Why is a solid STEM foundation important for students in the age of AI?

A: A solid STEM foundation, particularly in coding and related technical skills, is crucial for students to effectively engage with and leverage AI technologies. It also helps develop broader 'meta skills' like creativity, adaptability, and resilience, which are essential in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. 

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