logo
China is preparing to steal the jobs of the future

China is preparing to steal the jobs of the future

Telegraph17-07-2025
They call it 'artificial general intelligence' (AGI) and it may be only a matter of a few years away. AGI is the imagined point at which computers finally achieve consciousness, surpass human intelligence and begin to self-improve across virtually all cognitive tasks at an accelerating rate.
Sometimes referred to as the 'singularity', it's long been the stuff of science fiction, but many techies believe, such is the pace of current development, that it is on the verge of becoming a reality.
Whoever gets there first, it is widely believed, will inherit the Earth, embedding their influence, ideology and systems of governance into world affairs for generations to come.
It's a frightening as well as awe-inspiring prospect and it is one whose potentially transformational geopolitical consequences are only now starting to be more widely appreciated.
And it's why the US and China are increasingly engaged in what can only be described as a new arms race – or space race – to develop and harness artificial superintelligence for economic and geopolitical superiority. In both jurisdictions, hundreds of billions of dollars a year are being poured into getting there first.
Yet though the Trump administration is only too aware of the threat, its response is oddly backward-looking and counterproductive. Despite the apparent world lead the US has in supercomputing, there is a high chance it will end up losing the war.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

MTG again lashes out at Trump this time over his AI plan: ‘An absolute threat to federalism'
MTG again lashes out at Trump this time over his AI plan: ‘An absolute threat to federalism'

The Independent

time6 hours ago

  • The Independent

MTG again lashes out at Trump this time over his AI plan: ‘An absolute threat to federalism'

Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch ally of the MAGA movement, broke from President Donald Trump on Thursday to oppose his executive order on artificial intelligence, raising concerns about its impact on the environment and states' rights. Hoping to accelerate the United States's development of AI, Trump signed a series of executive orders on Wednesday, making it easier to build data centers on federal lands and incentivizing states to impose fewer regulations by threatening to withhold federal funding to AI projects. But Greene raised a red flag, saying she was concerned with the impact of massive data centers on the people and environment around, while providing little to no regulations. 'My deep concerns are that the EO demands rapid AI expansion with little to no guardrails and breaks. It also contains the threat of withholding federal funds from states who regulate AI, which is an absolute threat to federalism and why I strongly opposed the AI state moratorium originally in the BBB,' Greene wrote on X. Trump has pushed for more AI development in the U.S., hoping for companies such as Meta, Google, OpenAI, and Microsoft to develop and expand their AI technology beyond what the Chinese-based company DeepSeek has already done. But the Georgia congresswoman said the 'rushed AI expansion' should include a plan to address human and environmental impact – with particular concerns around using nearby water supplies that cross state lines. 'Competing with China does not mean become like China by threatening state rights, replacing human jobs on mass scale creating mass poverty, and creating potentially devastating effects on our environment and critical water supply,' Greene wrote. 'This needs a careful and wise approach. The AI EO takes the opposite.' Greene's statement is the latest in a string of opposing stances that she has taken against Trump, whom she has typically expressed unwavering loyalty to. Recently, Greene has also criticized the administration for not releasing the Epstein Files, a recent Trump-backed crypto bill, and the president's decision to intervene in the Iran–Israel conflict by bombing Iranian nuclear facilities. Her additional opposition also comes at a moment of contention between the president and his MAGA base. Trump's dismissal of the Epstein Files, of which conspiracy theories have floated in the MAGA world for years, appears to have caused a fracture in his base's trust. It's unclear how many may feel about the AI bill, but Greene's opposition provides some insight. 'I represent the base and when I'm frustrated and upset over the direction of things, you better be clear, the base is not happy,' Greene said on X back in May.

Ike Barinholtz cast as Elon Musk in OpenAI film from Luca Guadagnino
Ike Barinholtz cast as Elon Musk in OpenAI film from Luca Guadagnino

The Guardian

time6 hours ago

  • The Guardian

Ike Barinholtz cast as Elon Musk in OpenAI film from Luca Guadagnino

The Studio's Ike Barinholtz is set to play Elon Musk in Artificial, the Luca Guadagnino-directed film about Sam Altman and OpenAI. Barinholtz was nominated for an Emmy for his role as production executive Sal Saperstein in the acclaimed comedy series co-created by, among others, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, as well as acting as one of the co-creators of Kate Hudson sports-comedy series Running Point. Musk was one of the co-founders of OpenAI in 2015, along with Altman and a string of others; however, he left the company in 2018 and started a rival firm called xAI in 2023. Musk and OpenAI have been at loggerheads since, with a string of legal claims on both sides. Musk has accused OpenAI of abandoning its original charitable mission by establishing a for-profit subsidiary, and in August 2024 launched legal action against the company claiming he was manipulated into co-founding it, saying: 'The perfidy and deceit is of Shakespearean proportions.' Musk subsequently attempted a takeover of the company in 2025; his $97.4bn bid for OpenAI was rebuffed, with Altman posting on social media: 'no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.' In April, OpenAI countersued Musk for what it claimed were his 'malicious campaigns' and 'harassing legal claims'. Although plot details have not been confirmed, Guadagnino's film is said to concentrate on the brief period of behind-the-scenes drama when Altman was fired and re-hired as OpenAI CEO within a matter of days in November 2024. The board had claimed Altman was not 'consistently candid in his communications', but Altman was reinstated after many of the company's employees threatened to quit. Andrew Garfield, Monica Barbaro and Anora's Yura Borisov have reportedly been cast in the film, though their roles have not been clarified. The writer has been confirmed as novelist Simon Rich, a former contributor to the Observer and writer of Rogen comedy An American Pickle. Guadagnino has just completed thriller After the Hunt, starring Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri and Garfield, which is due to receive its world premiere at the Venice film festival.

Trump's AI plan calls for massive data centers. Here's how it may affect energy in the U.S.
Trump's AI plan calls for massive data centers. Here's how it may affect energy in the U.S.

The Independent

time7 hours ago

  • The Independent

Trump's AI plan calls for massive data centers. Here's how it may affect energy in the U.S.

President Donald Trump's plan to boost artificial intelligence and build data centers across the U.S. could speed up a building boom that was already expected to strain the nation's ability to power it. The White House released the 'AI Action Plan' Wednesday, vowing to expedite permitting for construction of energy-intensive data centers as it looks to make the country a leader in a business that tech companies and others are pouring billions of dollars into. The plan says to combat 'radical climate dogma,' a number of restrictions — including clean air and water laws — could be lifted, aligning with Trump's 'American energy dominance' agenda and his efforts to undercut clean energy. Here's what you need to know. What AI means for the environment Massive amounts of electricity are needed to support the complex servers, equipment and more for AI. Electricity demand from data centers worldwide is set to more than double by 2030, to slightly more than the entire electricity consumption of Japan today, the International Energy Agency said earlier this year. In many cases, that electricity may come from burning coal or natural gas. These fossil fuels emit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide and methane. This in turn is tied to extreme weather events that are becoming more severe, frequent and costly. The data centers used to fuel AI also need a tremendous amount of water to keep cool. That means they can strain water sources in areas that may have little to spare. What Big Tech is saying and doing about finding all that power Typically, tech giants, up-and-comers and other developers try to keep an existing power plant online to meet demand, experts say, and most existing power plants in the U.S. are still producing electricity using fossil fuels — most often natural gas. In certain areas of the U.S., a combination of renewables and energy storage in the form of batteries are coming online. But tapping into nuclear power is especially of interest as a way to reduce data center-induced emissions while still meeting demand and staying competitive. Amazon said last month it would spend $20 billion on data center sites in Pennsylvania, including one alongside a nuclear power plant. The investment allows Amazon to plug right into the plant, a scrutinized but faster approach for the company's development timeline. Meta recently signed a deal to secure nuclear power to meet its computing needs. Microsoft plans to buy energy from the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, and Google previously signed a contract to purchase it from multiple small modular reactors in the works. What's at stake in the kind of energy that powers data centers Data centers are often built where electricity is cheapest, and often, that's not from renewables. And sometimes data centers are cited as a reason to extend the lives of traditional, fossil-fuel-burning power plants. But just this week, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called on the world's largest tech players to fuel their data center needs entirely with renewables by 2030. It's necessary to use fewer fossil fuels, he said. Experts say it's possible for developers, investors and the tech industry to decarbonize. However, though industry can do a lot with clean energy, the emerging demands are so big that it can't be clean energy alone, said University of Pennsylvania engineering professor Benjamin Lee. More generative AI, ChatGPT and massive data centers means 'relying on wind and solar alone with batteries becomes really, really expensive,' Lee added, hence the attention on natural gas, but also nuclear. What does AI growth mean for my electricity bills? Regardless of what powers AI, the simple law of supply and demand makes it all but certain that costs for consumers will rise. New data center projects might require both new energy generation and existing generation. Developers might also invest in batteries or other infrastructure like transmission lines. All of this costs money, and it needs to be paid for from somewhere. 'In a lot of places in the U.S., they are seeing that rates are going up because utilities are making these moves to try to plan,' said Amanda Smith, a senior scientist at research organization Project Drawdown. 'They're planning transmission infrastructure, new power plants for the growth and the load that's projected, which is what we want them to do," she added. "But we as ratepayers will wind up seeing rates go up to cover that.' ___ Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate reporter. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ___ ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store