Boom Before Doom: The Terrifying Reason To Be Bullish On AI

Our Global Investment strategists argue that AI could be as transformative as the Agricultural or Industrial Revolutions, but carries existential medium- to long-term risks. Both prior revolutions lifted GDP growth more than 30-fold versus the preceding epoch, and AI may prove similarly powerful. 

The risks are equally profound. Bad actors could use AI for malevolent purposes, while AI systems themselves could inadvertently pursue goals harmful to humans. Computational irreducibility complicates safety, since AI behavior may not be predictable until after it occurs. 

Our colleagues note that a literal interpretation of quantum mechanics implies timelines where humanity survives AI and others where it does not. This creates a selection effect in which observers only experience positive outcomes, a logic they also apply at the individual level when considering life-threatening risks.