Top AI Safety Researcher Says He’s Stopped Saving for Retirement Because He’s So Sure We’re All Going to Die

Nate Soares, a leading machine learning researcher and president of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, has stopped contributing to his retirement account due to his unwavering belief that humanity will face an AI-driven extinction within the next ten years. During an interview on the Atlantic's podcast "The Most Interesting Thing in AI," Soares admitted he has not saved for retirement in a decade, despite having a 401(k) from his time at Google.

He is convinced that the possibility of AI causing humanity's demise is over 50 percent within the next decade, a prediction he is actively working to prevent. Soares, known for his alarmist prophecies, works closely with Elizier Yudkowsky to spread their concerns about AI's potential dangers. While critics argue there is no consensus on the likelihood of an AI apocalypse, Soares and Yudkowsky continue to raise public awareness and access to policymakers.

However, they acknowledge the immediate, widespread harm caused by AI technology, and the importance of addressing these issues in the present moment.