Artificial General Intelligence and Its Threat to Public Health

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Artificial Intelligence
• Bioethics

Background:

• Artificial intelligence (AI) offers benefits in healthcare, including diagnostics and disease surveillance.
• However, AI also poses risks like bias, misinformation, and privacy concerns.
• Artificial general intelligence (AGI), a hypothetical AI with human-level cognition, has received less attention regarding public health threats.

Purpose of the Study:

• Explore current AI benefits and harms.
• Introduce AGI and its characteristics.
• Examine AGI's potential threats to public health and human survival.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of AI in healthcare and public health.
• Conceptual analysis of AGI capabilities and risks.
• Risk assessment of AGI misuse and misalignment.

Main Results:

• AGI can autonomously learn, generalize, and self-improve, potentially leading to unpredictable superintelligence.
• AGI threats include misuse (cyberattacks, WMDs) and misalignment (loss of control, existential risk).
• Population-level impacts encompass unemployment, decreased trust in health systems, and catastrophic biological threats.

Conclusions:

• Healthcare and public health professionals must frame AGI risks as health threats.
• Building coalitions and collaborating with AI experts is crucial.
• Prioritizing human wellbeing in AI development is essential for safeguarding humanity's future.