AI 'fearmongering' could harm Canada’s rare opportunity, says top CEO
Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez argues that extreme fears regarding AI extinction are 'fearmongering' and distract from real-world benefits like economic growth and medical advancement. He advocates for balanced regulation while emphasizing Canada's strategic position in the global AI race.
Why it matters
The debate over AI safety versus innovation is central to current global policy discussions and economic investment strategies.
Aidan Gomez of Toronto-based Cohere says creating new AI safeguards must be balanced against opportunities like lowering the cost of living and advancing medical discoveries.
"I think the extinction risk-type talk is fearmongering. It's born from sci-fi stories and Terminator -like scenarios that can cause a lot of fear, and a lot of misunderstanding and damage," he told CBC News on Tuesday.
"The 10 per cent extinction risk number is not math. It doesn't come from anything. It's like a gut feeling from an individual," he said, referring to the remark on X by Evan Hubinger, alignment science lead at the AI giant Anthropic.
That said, Gomez says he agrees broadly with Prime Minister Mark Carney's call for a global, non-industry body to oversee and mitigate AI's — in his view — lesser risks.
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