Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1041

Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1041

Dear Colleagues! This is Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1041 for Pharma Veterans. Pharma Veterans Blogs are published by Asrar Qureshi on its dedicated site https://pharmaveterans.com. Please email to pharmaveterans2017@gmail.com for publishing our contributions here.

Credit: Bianca Salgado

Credit: Mikael Blomkvist

Credit: Pavel Danilyuk

This blogpost also partakes information from a McKinsey article. Link at the end.

Preamble

Artificial General Intelligence – AGI – is a theoretical AI system with capabilities that are as good as humans. 

AGI refers to an advanced form of artificial intelligence that can perform any intellectual task a human can do, with comparable levels of understanding, reasoning, and adaptability. Unlike current AI systems, which are domain-specific and limited to predefined tasks (narrow AI), AGI would possess general reasoning abilities and the capacity to learn and apply knowledge across a wide range of domains without human intervention.

The generative AI (gen AI) breakthrough achieved in the past year or so—is poised to revolutionize not just the way we create content but the very makeup of our economies and societies as a whole. But although gen AI tools such as ChatGPT may seem like a great leap forward, in reality, they are just a step in the direction of an even greater breakthrough – AGI.

How Close Are We to Reaching AGI for Public Use?  

Many researchers believe that we still decades, if not centuries, away from achieving AGI. Others predict that it could be much earlier than that. The reality may be somewhere in between but is shrouded in mystery.

Looking at the current progress, we find that AI systems like GPT, Bard, and others are advanced but fall under narrow AI, as they excel in specific areas but lack human-like reasoning or general adaptability.

While purely theoretical at this stage, someday AGI may replicate human-like cognitive abilities including reasoning, problem solving, perception, learning, and language comprehension. When AI’s abilities are indistinguishable from those of a human, it will have passed what is known as the Turing test, first proposed by 20th-century computer scientist Alan Turing. Having said that, though AI has made significant strides in recent years, but no AI tool to date has passed the Turing test. We’re still far from reaching a point where AI tools can understand, communicate, and act with the same nuance and sensitivity of a human—and, critically, understand the meaning behind it.

The timing of AGI’s emergence is uncertain. But when it does arrive—and it likely will at some point—it’s going to be a very big deal for every aspect of our lives, businesses, and societies. Executives can begin working now to better understand the path to machines achieving human-level intelligence and making the transition to a more automated world.

Presently, significant barriers to AGI remain. 

Computational complexity is one. The hardware and algorithms required to simulate human-like cognition and reasoning are still under development.

Lack of Generalization is another. Current AI struggles with tasks requiring intuitive understanding or transferable learning across diverse domains.

And then there are ethics and safety concerns. Ensuring AGI aligns with human values and operates safely is an unresolved challenge and may remain so for long.

Progression of AI to AGI

McKinsey defines eight capabilities that AI needs to master before achieving the status of AGI.

1. Visual Perception

2. Audio Perception

3. Fine Motor Skills

4. Natural Language Processing

5. Problem Solving

6. Navigation

7. Creativity

8. Social and Emotional Engagement

As can be noticed these capabilities are not easy to achieve. Though much has been understood about the functioning of human brain, the understanding of human mind’s working is still elusive.

Access to AGI Tools

Today, most people engage with AI in the same ways they’ve accessed digital power for years: via 2D screens such as laptops, smartphones, and TVs. The future will probably look a lot different. The examples we see already are augmented reality and virtual reality headsets, through which users experience an immersive virtual world. Another example would be humans accessing the AI world through implanted neurons in the brain. This might sound like something out of a sci-fi novel, but it’s not. In January 2024, Neuralink implanted a chip in a human brain, with the goal of allowing the human to control a phone or computer purely by thought.

A final mode of interaction with AI seems ripped from sci-fi as well: robots. These can take the form of mechanized limbs connected to humans or machine bases or even programmed humanoid robots. 

Sum Up

AGI, whenever it arrives, is expected to provide major benefits and may also cause serious disruptions. Of particular interest are areas like healthcare, diagnostics, drug development, economy, scientific advancements, education, and global problem solving.

At the same time, there are serious concerns including but not limited to ethical and social risks, control and alignment, security risks, existential risks, and regulations and governance.

While AGI holds immense promise, its development must be approached cautiously and responsibly. A collaborative effort among governments, industry, and researchers is essential to ensure that AGI aligns with societal values, promotes equitable access, and mitigates risks. The timeline to public-facing AGI remains uncertain, but ongoing advancements suggest we are on the path toward achieving it within the next few decades.

While it is important to learn more about AI, and take the benefits it can offer, it is good to stay informed about developments in these areas. The corporates are well advised to invest in AI now because the cost of doing nothing can be just too high. The organizations that get it right now will be poised to win in the coming era.

A very important point is to keep the humans at the center. People at all levels of the organization need 

Concluded.

Disclaimers: Pictures in these blogs are taken from free resources at Pexels, Pixabay, Unsplash, and Google. Credit is given where available. If a copyright claim is lodged, we shall remove the picture with appropriate regrets.

For most blogs, I research from several sources which are open to public. Their links are mentioned under references. There is no intent to infringe upon anyone’s copyrights. If, however, it happens unintentionally, I offer my sincere regrets.

Reference:

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-artificial-general-intelligence-agi