Alistair Stewart

ACTIVISTS calling for greater curbs on AI, artificial intelligence, are holding their “biggest protest yet” ahead of a secretive meeting of world leaders.

The Pause AI group, which launched its first protest in May, is meeting in Parliament Square Gardens tomorrow, Saturday, to call for a “global moratorium” ahead of an international AI safety summit in the capital next month.

World leaders are meeting at a secret location in the capital to discuss a response to the alarming growth in super intelligent tech that campaigners warn could lead to powerful totalitarian dystopias and even the end of the human race.

Alistair Stewart, one of the founders of Pause AI in this country, said: “The tech is very powerful and we, the public, don’t know how it works. When people make very powerful tech it can have harmful effects, on society, on individuals.

“Our concern is that this could have a wide-ranging impact. We are already seeing job losses and also the spread of disinformation. We are only going to see more AI-produced disinformation over the coming weeks and years.

“This can all lead to the erosion of trust in democracy.

“There has already been some political destabilisation.”

More than 33,000 people signed an open letter calling for a six-month pause in AI developments in April.

Mr Stewart said there were concerns about the way the courts would be using AI for sentencing in the future and predicted that cyber security attacks would follow.

“I have concerns about totalitarian dystopia where AIs are making surveillance extremely accessible for governments, making states far more powerful”, he said.

“And then – maybe this is not more concerning – an AI takeover that could lead to human extinction. AI would have no reason in keeping humans.

“Both cases are almost certainly going to be extremely bad.”

He added: “The trouble is we are seeing the technology dev­elop so fast.

“My concerns have become stren­gthened, if anything, over the last few months. But I’m slightly more optimistic about the politicians. The government seems to be taking this seriously, relative to other administrations.

“Our job as protesters is to be saying we are not doing enough.”

The group held protests against private corporations running AI labs since May last year. Mr Stewart said: “I’m not motivated by optimism or pessimism, perhaps more by a sense of fear and injustice.

“The way we are developing the tech is not nearly transparent enough.”

The planned Pause AI protest is in Parliament Square Gardens on Saturday from 2pm.

The government said it had set up an AI Standards Hub, the first body of its kind anywhere in the world.

Minister for tech and the digital economy Paul Scully said: “In the face of the rapidly evolving AI landscape, the UK’s leadership in AI standards has been significantly bolstered by the groundbreaking work of the AI Standards Hub.

“As the world continues to grapple with the challenges and opportunities presented by AI technologies, the UK stands at the forefront, showcasing its commitment to ensuring the safe, ethical, and responsible development of AI.”