One signal

Demis Hassabis says Google probably made the wrong call by keeping an early chatbot from public use. The DeepMind chief’s reported explanation is a familiar but consequential tension: a company whose reputation rests on search accuracy may be less willing to release a chatbot that sometimes gives wrong answers.

In an interview discussed by CXOToday, Hassabis contrasted that caution with the risk appetite of a startup. He also said AI’s most important uses should include finding treatments for disease and new sources of renewable energy. That is a glimpse of how one of AI’s leading figures weighs product risk against scientific promise.

Discuss: Should a company with a reputation for reliable answers launch a useful but error-prone chatbot early, or wait until it can defend the results?

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