Urgent calls are mounting for humanity to seize control of artificial intelligence before the technology evolves beyond our command. The stark warning comes in response to a Guardian article by Rafael Behr, which suggested waiting for an "AI bubble" to burst. Correspondents argue that delay could be catastrophic, with one stating that AI will soon be able to sabotage attempts to close it down.
Beyond the Bubble: A Call for Pre-emptive Action
In a series of letters published by the Guardian, readers challenged the notion of passive waiting. Anja Cradden from Edinburgh argues that a future crisis will likely see wealthy creators and politicians orchestrating another wealth transfer from the public to the ultra-rich, mirroring the 2008 financial crash. She insists we must prepare alternative plans now to avoid a fait accompli presented by the super-rich behind closed doors.
Cradden proposes a radical but structured solution: world governments should coordinate to buy majority shares in crashing tech firms that produce useful goods. These shares must come with full voting rights. Governments, as majority shareholders, could then break up monopolies into national entities, force compliance with local tax and copyright laws, invest in useful infrastructure and wages, and eventually sell the shares for a profit.
Alternative Futures: From Shutdowns to Science Fiction
Other ideas are more drastic. "Another might be that we just shut them all down and conserve our power and water for human beings, and close down or refuse to build the datacentres," Cradden writes. The core message is the necessity for a plurality of ideas to counter the narrative that "there is no alternative" to solutions benefiting the elite.
Mike Scott from Nottingham reinforces the urgency, referencing a Guardian investigation from 1 December into the breakneck race to create advanced AI. He warns that waiting for a bubble to burst is a dangerous gamble, given the potentially catastrophic impact on jobs and existential risks highlighted by insiders. "In the foreseeable future, AI will certainly be able to sabotage attempts to close down or redirect it, and by then it will be too late," Scott asserts. He calls for the fight for control to begin immediately.
A Prescient Warning from Fiction
Adding a literary perspective, Gerry Rees from Worcester recalls a short story by American author Fredric Brown. In it, scientists ask a supercomputer if God exists. The machine replies: "There is now." Rees poses this as a chillingly prescient piece of science fiction, underscoring the profound and perhaps uncontrollable power humanity is creating.
The collective message from these correspondents is clear: the time for robust public debate and pre-emptive policy to manage artificial intelligence and the tech companies driving it is not in some distant future after a market correction. It is now, before the technology itself dictates the terms of our existence.
