1
00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:04,797
Google's rise to becoming the most
powerful company in the world is

2
00:00:04,880 --> 00:00:07,917
gripping and all-encompassing.

3
00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:12,157
>> The assistance around us, the knowledge
that we have at our fingertips,

4
00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:18,840
literally will be profound.
It'll be a very, very powerful world.

5
00:00:22,240 --> 00:00:24,557
For a decade, Eric Schmidt operated as

6
00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:27,117
its CEO and afterwards as the executive

7
00:00:27,200 --> 00:00:29,917
chairman. Now he works on a series of

8
00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:34,157
projects and investments as well
as advising governments on applications of

9
00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:37,517
AI. Mr. Schmid, welcome and thank
you very much for the interview.

10
00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:40,957
>> Thank you for having me.
>> You advise governments on the

11
00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:44,717
implementation of the AI.
What are they most interested in?

12
00:00:44,800 --> 00:00:48,077
>> Well, governments are concerned about
two things. One, they want to win, but

13
00:00:48,160 --> 00:00:52,797
they're also concerned about safety for
their populations and can it be misused?

14
00:00:52,880 --> 00:00:57,357
You have to solve both problems. They
have to both invest but they also have

15
00:00:57,440 --> 00:01:01,517
to regulate and they're trying to sort
it out. Some are better than others.

16
00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:05,517
>> There is huge excitement about AI
at this conference. However, when you

17
00:01:05,600 --> 00:01:09,517
leave, you have the feeling that people
are actually really scared. Scared about

18
00:01:09,600 --> 00:01:13,517
their jobs, scared about AI going into
the wrong hands. How valid are those

19
00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:14,477
fears?

20
00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:17,757
>> Uh there's some truth to them. Um the

21
00:01:17,840 --> 00:01:21,117
models as they get smarter, if you will,

22
00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:25,357
have dangers embedded in them. The
industry puts what are called guardrails

23
00:01:25,440 --> 00:01:29,517
on them to try to prevent them from
answering questions like how do I kill

24
00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:31,197
myself? How do I kill somebody else?

25
00:01:31,280 --> 00:01:35,437
Things which are obviously dangerous.
So governments have trust and safety

26
00:01:35,520 --> 00:01:38,157
programs to do that. Remember that this

27
00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:40,717
is a wave that is a generational wave.

28
00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:43,197
It will go through it will take 10 or 15

29
00:01:43,280 --> 00:01:45,917
years. The PC revolution was like that.

30
00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:47,997
The internet revolution was like that.

31
00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:52,237
Social media was like that. AI will be
the same. We're just at the beginning of

32
00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:54,637
the changes that AI will bring in

33
00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:56,957
medicine, in science, in conflict, in

34
00:01:57,040 --> 00:01:59,357
information, in misinformation, in what

35
00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:04,237
you do and what I do.
It will all change mostly for the better.

36
00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:07,837
>> Where are you most concerned
about when it comes to AI and SAI?

37
00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:09,597
>> I'm actually concerned about us missing

38
00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:12,557
the opportunity. And the reason is that

39
00:02:12,640 --> 00:02:15,517
the arrival of an intelligence that's

40
00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:19,757
sort of like a polymath, one of these
sort of brilliant minds that is aligned

41
00:02:19,840 --> 00:02:23,837
with you, that works with you, is a
major change in human productivity and

42
00:02:23,920 --> 00:02:26,317
efficiency. And we have to harness that

43
00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:29,197
power. And we harness it for education,

44
00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:31,997
right? for medicine, for the efficiency

45
00:02:32,080 --> 00:02:34,397
of economies, for generating wealth, for

46
00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:39,197
making the middle class stronger, from
taking people from absolute poverty into

47
00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:41,277
the middle class, for climate change.

48
00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:45,517
All of that is bene benefits
from AI if it's done correctly.

49
00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,357
>> You were at the helm of Google when
social media came along. Did you see

50
00:02:49,440 --> 00:02:53,517
back then the negative implications
that we are so aware of now?

51
00:02:53,600 --> 00:02:58,077
>> I did not and I can confidently say
that almost all of my peers did not see it

52
00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:02,397
either. Um when I think about it,
I think about it in terms of the bubble

53
00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:04,637
that we live in. All of us are similar.

54
00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:08,157
We have a certain level of education,
a certain set of political views. We come

55
00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:12,557
from the west. And I think we did
not understand how these incredibly

56
00:03:12,640 --> 00:03:16,957
important tools which benefited many
many people could also be misused. I

57
00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:18,957
think that the fact that social media

58
00:03:19,040 --> 00:03:22,237
has enabled tribalism and misinformation

59
00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:26,877
was not in the plan. That's not what
we designed, but it happened and now we

60
00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:30,637
have to address it. How can we learn
from this example when it comes now to

61
00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:33,437
the AI revolution? >> Well,
I've written one book and I have

62
00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:37,757
another book coming out in in November
on the same subject. We have to get

63
00:03:37,840 --> 00:03:39,997
ahead of AI and its impact on human

64
00:03:40,080 --> 00:03:43,597
life. When your child or your grandchild

65
00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:47,117
has as its best friend a nonhuman actor,

66
00:03:47,200 --> 00:03:51,437
right, a voice on a computer and they're
five years old, what does that do for

67
00:03:51,520 --> 00:03:55,357
development? Should we allow it?
How should it behave? Children are very

68
00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:59,997
important. um all sorts of issues
around messages and identification. I

69
00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:04,557
personally am in free in favor of free
speech for humans but not for computers.

70
00:04:04,640 --> 00:04:07,997
I want to hear from humans and their
voices. I don't want to hear what

71
00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:11,837
computers think humans think. I want
to hear from actual humans. Those are

72
00:04:11,920 --> 00:04:15,437
simple principles. Would not
be difficult to write them down.

73
00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:17,677
>> You have spoken about implementation of

74
00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:20,797
AI in warfare just now. How much of AI

75
00:04:20,880 --> 00:04:23,597
is currently used on the battlefield?

76
00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:26,557
almost none is used on the battlefield

77
00:04:26,640 --> 00:04:28,477
and most of that I think is good.

78
00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:30,637
Battles are very rough. It's very tough.

79
00:04:30,720 --> 00:04:34,077
AI has every reason to in my view to

80
00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:36,397
become an even more lethal solution in

81
00:04:36,480 --> 00:04:38,477
warfare. And the wars that I have seen

82
00:04:38,560 --> 00:04:42,477
are horrific. So unfortunately war will

83
00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:46,637
be changed by AI too. Um in some sense
it's good because it'll become more

84
00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:49,117
targeted but it's bad because it'll

85
00:04:49,200 --> 00:04:53,757
become easier. But do you feel that
investments in warfare a government

86
00:04:53,840 --> 00:04:57,357
should also change and be
more adapted to the new world?

87
00:04:57,440 --> 00:04:59,997
>> Well, I do because the simple simple

88
00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:04,797
answer is that drones which are
inexpensive can take out a tank, right?

89
00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:06,557
So tanks are very expensive. Drones are

90
00:05:06,640 --> 00:05:11,837
very cheap. Tank versus drone, the drone
wins. So all of these assumptions that

91
00:05:11,920 --> 00:05:15,357
militaries have made about the importance
of large things like aircraft

92
00:05:15,440 --> 00:05:18,477
carriers and submarines and army bases

93
00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:22,557
and so forth and tanks and other very
exotic weapons uh which you see in

94
00:05:22,640 --> 00:05:26,637
America all the time are are essentially
being undermined. All those assumptions

95
00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:30,557
are being undermined by this new
technology as it rolls out. I'm

96
00:05:30,640 --> 00:05:35,117
confident that in a decade the the the
structures of militaries will be very

97
00:05:35,200 --> 00:05:38,877
different for that reason. Here in Saudi,
we have a sense that there is a

98
00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:42,477
lot of pushing towards leadership
of this AI revolution. How well is the

99
00:05:42,560 --> 00:05:47,437
kingdom placed to do so? >> Saudi
is very well positioned if it does

100
00:05:47,520 --> 00:05:51,597
a whole bunch of things. Saudi has
abundant energy, obviously, abundant

101
00:05:51,680 --> 00:05:55,837
land, and a strong commitment to building
things. U the world is going to

102
00:05:55,920 --> 00:06:00,077
need gigawatts and gigawatts of data
centers. These are very, very large data

103
00:06:00,160 --> 00:06:04,877
centers. They could be in Saudi and Saudi
has good enough connectivity that

104
00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:08,957
Saudi could be one of the places not
the only place but one of the places where

105
00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:13,437
AI technology is invented and developed
often by people who are in other

106
00:06:13,520 --> 00:06:17,197
countries using them. The key
to this remember is that the internet is

107
00:06:17,280 --> 00:06:21,037
borderless in that sense and the work
can be done here while the people live

108
00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:24,397
in the countries where they are
are from. It's a good outcome.

109
00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:28,237
>> You did say that a few things would
have to be done like what? Well, the most

110
00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:32,237
important thing is a commitment to do it.
And the good news about this

111
00:06:32,320 --> 00:06:36,157
government is this government is willing
to put large amounts of money behind

112
00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:40,477
successful investments. One thing I have
said to the Saudis this trip is those

113
00:06:40,560 --> 00:06:44,877
investments will be very, very good
financially. It's good business. It's

114
00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:49,277
good strategically. And frankly,
it's good for a Saudi as it's trans goes

115
00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:53,037
through its transformation to become
a world leader to be at this level. They

116
00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:56,157
need to do this to get
to where they want to be.

117
00:06:56,240 --> 00:07:00,077
>> Here at FI8, as we said, there
is so much excitement about the AI.

118
00:07:00,160 --> 00:07:02,877
Realistically, where are we as a society

119
00:07:02,960 --> 00:07:04,957
with implementation of AI?

120
00:07:05,040 --> 00:07:07,917
>> We're just at the beginning. Um, you as

121
00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:12,717
a consumer see it in the way the social
media apps work and Google works and so

122
00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:16,797
forth. But I want you to think
differently. Today in your show, you

123
00:07:16,880 --> 00:07:20,557
have a producer and a director and a
whole team that helps you. Why is that

124
00:07:20,640 --> 00:07:24,957
not all those functions not handled
by your AI assistant that knows exactly

125
00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:29,757
what's going on? Helps you become even
better than you already are. Each of us

126
00:07:29,840 --> 00:07:33,197
will become better at what we do because
we'll have these assistants and these

127
00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:37,437
assistants will be with our permission
highly personalized to what we do and

128
00:07:37,520 --> 00:07:38,877
what we care about.

129
00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:41,517
>> Do you feel that educational system is

130
00:07:41,600 --> 00:07:44,797
prepared to teach an entire new mindset

131
00:07:44,880 --> 00:07:47,677
of this future work? What I would say is

132
00:07:47,760 --> 00:07:50,237
that AI transforms every industry

133
00:07:50,320 --> 00:07:54,717
including education. Um it's obvious
that teachers will be important.

134
00:07:54,800 --> 00:07:56,957
Teachers with AI will be better teachers

135
00:07:57,040 --> 00:07:58,397
than teachers without.

136
00:07:58,480 --> 00:08:01,917
>> And last question, how important with

137
00:08:02,000 --> 00:08:06,157
all the AI systems we have, is it still
to sit down and talk like we are doing

138
00:08:06,240 --> 00:08:10,637
here today, like all these
people are doing here today at FI?

139
00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:14,317
>> I think that human contact, human
connection is going to be with us for

140
00:08:14,400 --> 00:08:18,797
the rest of humanity. Um eventually
the computers will run a whole bunch of

141
00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:23,197
stuff while we're still talking to each
other. Um so I think human behavior is

142
00:08:23,280 --> 00:08:25,357
not going to change very much but the

143
00:08:25,440 --> 00:08:27,917
assistance around us the knowledge that

144
00:08:28,000 --> 00:08:30,637
we have at our fingertips literally um

145
00:08:30,720 --> 00:08:35,517
will be profound. Think about what you
know now from your use of Google right

146
00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:38,877
compared to before Google and now
imagine when you have an assistant

147
00:08:38,960 --> 00:08:41,197
that's using Google or from Google that

148
00:08:41,280 --> 00:08:43,757
can really uh upcharge what you do.

149
00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:46,157
It'll be a very very powerful world.

150
00:08:46,240 --> 00:08:47,277
>> Thank you very much indeed.

151
00:08:47,360 --> 00:08:50,440
>> Thank you.