AI Could Devastate Earth’s Population to Size of UK by 2300, Expert Warns

An Oklahoma tech expert predicts that by 2300, artificial intelligence may cut Earth’s population down to 100 million. Subhash Kak warns that as AI takes over jobs, birth rates will plunge, leading to society’s drastic transformation. He cites current demographic trends and comparisons to opinions from Elon Musk about colonizing Mars as a potential refuge for humanity, underlining the urgency of addressing these changes.

In a startling prediction, an Oklahoma technology expert has suggested that artificial intelligence could dramatically reduce the Earth’s population from approximately 8 billion to just 100 million people by the year 2300. Subhash Kak, a computer science professor at Oklahoma State University, expressed his concerns in a recent interview, stating that the impact of AI on society could be devastating. He noted, “I think people really don’t have a clue.” He emphasized that this significant population decline wouldn’t happen through cataclysmic events like nuclear war but through the replacement of jobs by machines.

Kak, author of the book “Age of Artificial Intelligence,” believes that as AI becomes more integrated into various industries—from law to education and even personal relationships—humans may become increasingly irrelevant. “Computers or robots will never be conscious, but they will be doing literally all that we do because most of what we do in our lives can be replaced,” he explained. He fears this workforce shift will lead to an alarming decrease in birth rates as people hesitate to raise children in an uncertain future with fewer job opportunities.

The demographic shifts he outlined are already underway, Kak claims, with people opting out of having children amid fears that their offspring will face bleak employment prospects. “There are demographers who are suggesting that as a consequence, the world population will collapse, and it could go down to as low as just 100 million people on the entire planet Earth in 2300 or 2380,” he warned. This drastic reduction would transform bustling cities like London and New York into what he referred to as ghost towns, a scenario that’s hard to fathom.

Kak supports his premise with data, asserting that trends already show steep declines in birth rates in countries such as Europe, China, Japan, and South Korea. He cautioned that reversing such trends is challenging; many people have children for social and emotional reasons, and a sense of future stability tends to affect these decisions. He cited Elon Musk, who has often warned about rising concerns over declining birth rates and has even suggested that humans may need to colonize Mars as a potential safety net against a catastrophic decline on Earth.

Kak summarized Musk’s theory, indicating that if humanity does face tragic situations that lead to a massive population decline, having colonies elsewhere might help sustain the species. Regarding the possible extinction of humanity, he stated uncertainty, but asserted one thing he is sure of: “what is absolutely certain is that there is a population collapse occurring right before our eyes.”

In sum, the projections of Subhash Kak emphasize a dire possibility where AI diminishes human relevance in the workforce, leading to a significant decline in birth rates and a drastically reduced global population by 2300. While he identifies the ongoing demographic trends in various regions, he underscores the challenge of reversing them. The grim specter of ghost towns looms, raising questions about our collective future in an AI-dominated world.

Original Source: nypost.com