2009 NYT: scientists already debated AI risk at Asilomar, 16 years ago
erichorvitz · x · 2026-09-13
Eric Horvitz shares the NYT's July 2009 coverage of the AAAI Asilomar meeting, where leading computer scientists and roboticists debated whether to limit research that could lead to loss of human control. They worried about job displacement and machines increasingly mimicking humans, while generally dismissing centralized superintelligence and spontaneously emerging internet intelligence. A striking historical parallel to today's AI safety debates.
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