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Many people think AI is already sentient - and that's a big problem

A survey of people in the US has revealed the widespread belief that artificial intelligence models are already self-aware, which is very far from the truth

By Chris Stokel-Walker

18 July 2024

AIs are not yet artificial minds

Panther Media GmbH / Alamy

Around one in five people in the US believe that artificial intelligence is already sentient, while around 30 per cent think that artificial general intelligences (AGIs) capable of performing any task a human can are already in existence. Both beliefs are false, suggesting that the general public has a shaky grasp of the current state of AI – but does it matter?

Jacy Reese Anthis at the Sentience Institute in New York and his colleagues asked a nationally representative sample of 3500 people in the US their perceptions of…

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