The rise of AI is sparking an international arms race

"Artificial intelligence is the future not only of Russia but of all of mankind ... Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will become the ruler of the world." Russian President Vladimir Putin made this statement to a group of students two weeks ago. Shortly thereafter, Tesla's Elon Musk, who has worried publicly about the hazards of artificial intelligence (AI) for years now, posted an ominous tweet in response to Putin's remarks. "China, Russia, soon all countries w/ strong computer science," he wrote. It's tempting to dismiss Musk's tweet as alarmist, but is it?