Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai has created a new business unit focused on developing advanced artificial intelligence (AI) innovations and products.
Merging of Google research’s brain team and DeepMind
The newly established Google DeepMind was formed through the amalgamation of the Brain team from Google Research and London-based AI company DeepMind, which Google acquired in 2014. The primary objective of this merger is to accelerate the company’s advancements in AI development while ensuring its safety and responsibility.
Sundar Pichai’s vision for consolidating Google’s AI expertise into a single, dedicated team is to accelerate the company’s progress in the AI domain. Jeff Dean, the chief scientist for Google Research and Google DeepMind, will report directly to Pichai and has been assigned to develop a range of powerful, multi-modal AI models.
Addressing concerns and fears around AI
In response to concerns, such as those expressed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, regarding the potential threat of AI to civilization, Pichai emphasized the unit’s purpose: “To ensure the bold and responsible development of general AI, we’re creating a unit that will help us build more capable systems more safely and responsibly.” Although Pichai mentioned that the unit’s developments would be utilized to enhance Google products, specific details have not yet been disclosed.
A recent survey conducted among 11,004 U.S. citizens highlighted significant apprehensions about the potential impact of AI on the workforce. While 56% of respondents believed AI would substantially affect the U.S. economy, a mere 13% thought that “AI will help more than hurt” American workers.
