Law
The Case for Animal-Friendly AI
Ghose, Sankalpa, Tse, Yip Fai, Rasaee, Kasra, Sebo, Jeff, Singer, Peter
Artificial intelligence is seen as increasingly important, and potentially profoundly so, but the fields of AI ethics and AI engineering have not fully recognized that these technologies, including large language models (LLMs), will have massive impacts on animals. We argue that this impact matters, because animals matter morally. As a first experiment in evaluating animal consideration in LLMs, we constructed a proof-of-concept Evaluation System, which assesses LLM responses and biases from multiple perspectives. This system evaluates LLM outputs by two criteria: their truthfulness, and the degree of consideration they give to the interests of animals. We tested OpenAI ChatGPT 4 and Anthropic Claude 2.1 using a set of structured queries and predefined normative perspectives. Preliminary results suggest that the outcomes of the tested models can be benchmarked regarding the consideration they give to animals, and that generated positions and biases might be addressed and mitigated with more developed and validated systems. Our research contributes one possible approach to integrating animal ethics in AI, opening pathways for future studies and practical applications in various fields, including education, public policy, and regulation, that involve or relate to animals and society. Overall, this study serves as a step towards more useful and responsible AI systems that better recognize and respect the vital interests and perspectives of all sentient beings.
The Wild Claim at the Heart of Elon Musk's OpenAI Lawsuit
Elon Musk started the week by posting testily on X about his struggles to set up a new laptop running Windows. He ended it by filing a lawsuit accusing OpenAI of recklessly developing human-level AI and handing it over to Microsoft. Musk's lawsuit is filed against OpenAI and two of its executives, CEO Sam Altman and president Greg Brockman, both of whom worked with the rocket and car entrepreneur to found the company in 2015. A large part of the case pivots around a bold and questionable technical claim: That OpenAI has developed so-called artificial general intelligence, or AGI, a term generally used to refer to machines that can comprehensively match or outsmart humans. The case claims that Altman and Brockman have breached the original "Founding Agreement" for OpenAI worked out with Musk, which it says pledged the company to develop AGI openly and "for the benefit of humanity. Musk's suit alleges that the for-profit arm of the company, established in 2019 after he parted ways with OpenAI, has instead created AGI without proper transparency and licensed it to Microsoft, which has invested billions into the company. It demands that OpenAI be forced to release its technology openly and that it be barred from using it to financially benefit Microsoft, Altman, or Brockman. "On information and belief, GPT-4 is an AGI algorithm," the lawsuit states, referring to the large language model that sits behind OpenAI's ChatGPT. It cites studies that found the system can get a passing grade on the Uniform Bar Exam and other standard tests as proof that it has surpassed some fundamental human abilities. "GPT-4 is not just capable of reasoning.
Elon Musk suing OpenAI and its chief executive Sam Altman
Elon Musk is suing OpenAI and its chief executive Sam Altman for allegedly abandoning the company's original mission to develop artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity not profit. The lawsuit alleges that Altman and Greg Brockman, co-founder of the artificial intelligence (AI) research organisation, originally approached Musk to make an open source, non-profit company. The focus of the company, which is behind ChatGPT and is backed by Microsoft, on making money breached that contract, Musk's lawyers said in the lawsuit filed in San Francisco. They added that the company kept the design of GPT-4, its most advanced AI model, 'a complete secret'. Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015, but stepped down from its board in 2018.
Elon Musk sues OpenAI and Sam Altman for allegedly ditching non-profit mission
OpenAI co-founder Elon Musk has sued the company, his fellow co-founders, associated businesses and unidentified others. He claims that, by chasing profits, they're violating OpenAI's status as a non-profit and its foundational contractual agreements to develop AI "for the benefit of humanity." The suit alleges that OpenAI has become a "closed-source de facto subsidiary" of Microsoft, which has invested 13 billion and holds a 49 percent stake. Microsoft uses OpenAI tech to power generative AI tools such as Copilot. According to the filing, under OpenAI's current board, it is allegedly developing and refining an artificial general intelligence (AGI) "to maximize profits for Microsoft, rather than for the benefit of humanity. This was a stark betrayal of the Founding Agreement."
Why Elon Musk Is Suing OpenAI and Sam Altman
The fallout from the OpenAI board's failed attempt to fire CEO Sam Altman last November took an unexpected turn on Thursday, in events that could have a significant bearing on the future of the company and the wider world of artificial intelligence. Elon Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in a San Francisco court, alleging that Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman have violated OpenAI's founding mission to develop AI safely and for the benefit of humanity. The billionaire owner of SpaceX and X (formerly Twitter) co-founded OpenAI alongside Altman and Brockman back in 2015, but stepped away from the company in 2018. Musk disagreed with Altman and Brockman's plan to turn OpenAI from a non-profit to a for-profit company, and before stepping down, reportedly mounted an unsuccessful bid to install himself as CEO. Musk is suing Altman, Brockman, and several of OpenAI's business entities for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and unfair business practices, seeking unspecified damages above 105,000.
Elon Musk Sues OpenAI and Sam Altman for Breach of Contract
Elon Musk is suing OpenAI and Sam Altman for allegedly abandoning OpenAI's original mission to develop artificial intelligence to benefit humanity. "OpenAI, Inc. has been transformed into a closed-source de facto subsidiary of the largest technology company in the world: Microsoft," Musk's lawyers wrote in the lawsuit, which was filed late on Thursday in San Francisco. "Under its new board, it is not just developing but is refining an AGI [Artificial General Intelligence] to maximize profits for Microsoft, rather than for the benefit of humanity," claims the filing. "On information and belief, GPT-4 is an AGI algorithm." OpenAI, which counts Musk among its cofounders, has a unique corporate structure.
Elon Musk asks court to decide if GPT-4 has human-level intelligence
Elon Musk has asked a court to settle the question of whether GPT-4 is an artificial general intelligence (AGI), as part of a lawsuit against OpenAI. The development of AGI, capable of performing a range of tasks just like a human, is one of the leading goals of the field, but experts say the idea of a judge deciding whether GPT-4 qualifies is "impractical". Musk was one of the founders of OpenAI in 2015, but he left it in February 2018, reportedly over a dispute about the firm changing from a non-profit to a capped-profit model. Despite this, he continued to support OpenAI financially, with his legal complaint claiming he donated more than 44 million to it between 2016 and 2020. Since the arrival of ChatGPT, OpenAI's flagship chatbot product, in November 2022, and the firm's partnership with Microsoft, Musk has warned AI development is moving too quickly – a view only exacerbated by the release of GPT-4, the latest AI model to power ChatGPT.
Elon Musk sues OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman for putting profits above humanity
Elon Musk is suing OpenAI and its chief executive Sam Altman, alleging the start-up betrayed its original promise of working to benefit humanity when it forged a multibillion-dollar alliance with Microsoft. The lawsuit filed in San Francisco on Thursday said Altman and OpenAI's co-founder Greg Brockman had initially pledged to make an open-source, non-profit company, and that its pursuit of profit constituted a breach of contract. The company had kept the design of GPT-4, its most advanced AI model, "a complete secret", said Musk's lawyers. Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015, but stepped down from its board in 2018. He also runs electric vehicle maker Tesla and rocket maker SpaceX, and bought Twitter for 44bn in October 2022.
Elon Musk sues OpenAI accusing it of putting profit before humanity
Elon Musk has filed a lawsuit accusing OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman, of breaching its foundational mission by putting the pursuit of profit ahead of the benefit of humanity. The world's richest man, a founding board member of the artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT, claimed that Altman had "set aflame" the OpenAI's founding agreement by signing an investment deal with Microsoft. The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco on Thursday, claims that OpenAI is now developing artificial general intelligence (AGI) – a theoretical form of AI that can perform a range of tasks at or above a human level of intelligence – for profit rather than for the benefit of humankind. "OpenAI Inc has been transformed into a closed-source, de facto subsidiary of the largest technology company in the world: Microsoft. Under its new board, it is not just developing but is actually refining an AGI to maximise profits for Microsoft, rather than for the benefit of humanity," the lawsuit alleges.