‘Godfather of AI’ Hinton predicts AI could unleash 'mass unemployment, risks to humanity'

Geoffrey Hinton, widely known as the “godfather of AI,” has warned that artificial intelligence could unleash “massive unemployment and a huge rise in profits,” intensifying the divide between rich and poor.

Speaking to the Financial Times, the Nobel Prize winner and former Google scientist said AI will be exploited by the wealthy to slash jobs and boost profits. He said that rich people are going to use AI to replace workers, resulting in few people much richer and most people poorer. He also said it is not AI’s fault, that is the capitalist system.

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Hinton noted that industries reliant on routine tasks are most at risk of disruption, while highly skilled sectors, particularly healthcare, could benefit. He pointed to the potential for AI to multiply doctors’ efficiency, offering greater healthcare access without additional costs.

The AI pioneer also rejected OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s suggestion of a universal basic income, arguing it fails to address the importance of human dignity or the sense of value derived from work.

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Recent research by the New York Federal Reserve found that firms adopting AI are more likely to retrain staff than dismiss them, though job cuts remain a concern.

Beyond employment, Hinton repeated stark warnings about AI’s existential risks, estimating a 10–20 per cent chance of the technology wiping out humanity once superintelligence emerges. He cautioned about its misuse in developing bioweapons, noting that while China has prioritised the threat, the Trump administration resisted stricter regulation.

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